


Above the Iron Sky

by Antinael



Category: POKEMON Detective Pikachu (2019), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Adult Ash Ketchum, CNM, CNM News Network, Capitalism, Emotional Manipulation, Evil Corporations, F/M, Freedom, Human/Pokemon Relationship(s), Internet, Manipulation, Mass Media, News Media, Other, Pokemon Battle, Pokemon Fanfiction, Pokemon League, Pokemon Training, Raichu - Freeform, Ryme City, Thunderstone, new world order
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-26
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2020-10-28 17:50:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 30,280
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20782658
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Antinael/pseuds/Antinael
Summary: This whole fanfiction was inspired by the movie "Pokemon Detective Pikachu". Most of the story takes place in Ryme City 5 years after the events in the movie and 10 years after the Pokemon season Indigo League.The story is about friendship and the bond between human and Pokemon. It is about going the hard way and staying true to yourself, instead of going the easier way and making compromise. It is about how we all make mistakes.The story is also a warning against corporatist abuse and the downside of capitalism.





	1. Sparkback

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, this is the first chapter of my Pokemon fanfiction "Above the Iron Sky"!
> 
> Not all of it will be like this. But the first chapter is from Pikachu’s perspective and that leaves very few choices for words. But, unlike it seems, what I wrote does have a meaning. There is such thing as “Pikachu language”, it seems that some syllable combinations have a consistent meaning throughout the series and most of those syllable combinations are used in this chapter. Google “Pikachu language”, and maybe you will get a glimpse of what is happening here! Otherwise, it will be revealed, at some point.

Pika… Pika… Pika… Pika… Pika… Pi…

Pika?...

Pikapi? Pikapi!

Piiiiiiii?

PIKAPI!!!

Pikachu! Pika! PIKAPI!!!

Piiika – CHUUUUUUUUU!!!


	2. Clifford

_Why was the media trying to rehabilitate his image?!_, Anais thought frustrated. One year ago, when she quit her job at one of Clifford’s corporations, she made two promises to herself: that she would never in her life work in a corporation again and that she would cease paying attention to mass media forever. While, with all the necessary compromise, especially the financial type, she was doing a great job sticking to the first promise, she still had some issues with the second one.

But sometimes, the t.v. was the only source of noise in her small rented apartment, and she really needed a source of noise to keep her mind off the loneliness.

With his thin face framed by silvery strands of hair, the old man and former governor of Ryme City, who had gotten out of jail a month ago, had a holy aura to him. _Must be the studio lights_, Anais thought to herself, as she was getting dressed for a small evening walk in one of the more secluded and modest neighborhoods of Ryme city.

The man had spent almost five years in jail under the accusations of being involved in genetic experiments on Pokemon, as well as financing the research for the so called “R” substance: a gas that allegedly altered the conscience of the Pokemon inhaling it, enabling humans to inhabit the Pokemon’ bodies. At the time this happened, Anais had been freshly recruited to work in one of Clifford’s corporations – it seemed at that time that the man owned almost all of Ryme city! – and didn’t have much time to follow the news.

However, the media was quick to forget about the subject and replace it with mundane topics. No doubt Clifford was a controversial person with a huge financial empire behind him. And, given the media’s rush to pass the whole incident over in silence, she was sure that at least some of the story was true.

As she pulled a black blouse over her head, she was now listening to a live interview with Clifford on news network CNM, about how he was innocent. Now, that he was free, he went on and on about his plans to contribute to the wellbeing of the Ryme city citizens.

“Well Ms. McMaster, my companies are always happy to help people who want to help themselves.”, Clifford was telling the journalist.

_An other sample of soulless corporatist speech_, Anais thought, as she was choosing a pair of shoes to wear. _Corpo-speech, hah…_

“We are willing to give young people a chance to get wealthy right from a young age, Ms. McMaster!”

_How about the not-so-young adults, like my parents, Mr. Clifford? What about them? Once you are over 50, you stop existing, or what?_

“I was always drawn to the energy and creativity of the youth, you see.”, Clifford explained.

_The younger, the better, Mr. Clifford. This way, they are stupid enough not to know they have rights, constantly violated by your shitty corporations! This way, their brains are empty enough in order to be filled with your corporatist shit!_

“And let me tell you something!”

_What?_

“In my companies, you don’t encounter the typical, so called <<corporatist atmosphere>>!”

_No, you encounter an even worse atmosphere than the typical one_, Anais mimicked his voice in her mind, while putting yet the third earring in her left ear. She had a thing for earrings.

“And you want to hear why? Because we encourage our employees to express themselves and we value their opinions.”. Clifford stated, in a calm and, for the unexperienced youth, convincing manner.

_As long as they are the same as yours_, Anais concluded, packing her camera in a small bag, as she needed more photos for her anti-corporations personal blog.

She spread some bread crumbles in her balcony, for the Pidgeot lurking around, turned off the t.v. and headed outside.


	3. Unauthorized Access

Somewhere, in a basement, three friends were sitting in front of a lap top, staring in awe at it and finding hard to believe what they were just hearing.

“Ms. McMaster, I am counting on you to deliver the news to the masses, in such a way that people become frightened and also believe you.”

This was Clifford’s voice, no doubt.

“I am sure everything will go according to the plan”, replied a woman’s voice, and if Clifford hadn’t called her by her name a second before, her identity would have probably been hard to discover.

“Here is a short little recap… First, you have to spread the fake news of a virus affecting Pokemon, and being only Pokemon to Pokemon transmitted. I leave the name of the disease up to you, since you journalists have more imagination than us.”

“Don’t worry Mr. Clifford, my team from news network CNM has already brainstormed a few terrifying disease names”, McMaster assured him.

_This McMaster woman is the CNM’s most renowned journalist_, James thought. _Horrible what money makes you do._

“Then, after everyone is nice and panicked, we will bring them the cure, of course, all promoted by CNM. I will be counting on you to do a good job.”

The recording of what seemed to be a phone conversation between Howard Clifford and the journalist Cynthia McMaster got temporarily replaced by interference, but could be again heard clearly after a few seconds.

“The vaccine will at first be optional. After a few months <interference> make it compulsory for all Pokemon owned by humans. It will be your job to <interference>, unless the human partners have their Pokemon vaccinated, their beloved friends will fall victims to the malady.”

_This is insane!_, Jessie thought. She was already feeling nauseous from the pregnancy, and what she was just listening to made it hard for her to refrain from throwing up. James put his hand on hers, knowing that Jessie was feeling ill and reassuring her.

“And please do not forget the purpose of all this. Ever since Ryme City became a Heaven for Pokemon, and one of the few places in the world where humans and Pokemon live in perfect harmony, our profits have gone down. And I am talking about the profits made by television channels as well, Ms. McMaster! At a first glance, no one would see a link between the two. But, at a closer look, you get an understanding of how our Pokemon partners influence us: humans have become more free spirited, spend more time in nature instead of working for our corporations and obediently watching t.v., are harder to control. In order to make capitalism thrive once again, we must break this link. And our vaccine will do just that! You, Ms. McMaster, will be generously rewarded for your cooperation.”

After a short silence, McMaster was quick to reassure Clifford that everything would go according to the plan. Team Rocket desperately wanted to get more details, but unfortunately, the phone conversation was covered with interference from this point on. This was all that James could find while hacking the servers of the HC Corp. Maybe if he had spent more time virtually lurking in the HC Corp. servers, he could have been able to find out more.

But hacking was dangerous and he couldn’t afford to be caught. Not now, when Jessie was pregnant with his child, and after the couple, united by Team Rocket many years ago, made a promise to themselves: no matter what happened, the child would not grow up without one of their parents. The precious soul, who was waiting to come to the world, deserved a better childhood than Jessie had.

“Let’s upload it online!”, James exclaimed. “It is the best solution!”

“It is not the best, but the first!”, a high-pitched, but cute and somewhat playful voice interrupted James’ fervour. It came from Meowth.

Meowth was lazily spread on the floor besides Jessie, turning over the pages of a book. Although some Pokemon could learn to read, reading was an unusual pastime for such a being. But so was speaking, so Jessie and James were used by now to Meowth’s quirkiness.

“What are you suggesting, Meowth?”, asked Jessie, trying to stay calm and ignore the unpleasant sensations her body was sending.

“Well!”, exclaimed Meowth, standing up and starting to stroll around the small basement. “It is good that you also ask me, before jumping into any thoughtless action!”

“Yes, yes, we know already!”, interrupted James. “Just get on with your theory!”

“Ok, ok, sheesh! Do you know that the internet from the whole country is controlled by just a handful of corporations? One of them belonging to Clifford, mind you! They control the information everyone spreads online! They filter it, delete it and make it invisible for search engines! A single source of information, like us, simply can’t spread the information, under these circumstances!”

Jessie and James were staring at Meowth, not having any clue where his theory was heading. _They still don’t get it, sheesh!,_ thought Meowth.

“What if, instead of one source of information, there were a few hundred? Or even a few thousand!”

“Oh… I think I understand what you mean, Meowth…”, James whispered thoughtfully.

_Finally!_

“We have to search through our data base, then”, Jessie intervened. “See how many contacts we have, and send this recording anonymously to everyone. Hopefully, at least a small part of our recipients will spread the information further! Stopping this flow will be like holding back the water from a holey pipe with bare hands!”

“Let’s start with Pokemon trainers first!”, Meowth suggested. “I believe they are most likely to take action.”

And, before sending the recording to all Pokemon trainers they could find in their data base, they proceeded to a group hug.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A small clarification about this chapter: it is canon than Jessie grew up without her mother. Her mother was a Team Rocket member and disappeared in mission when Jessie was still a child. I don’t know in which episode Jessie states this, or if it is only in the manga. But the part when Jessie and James made the promise that their child would not grow up as an orphan is based on this canon information.


	4. An Unexpected Friend

_This place is perfect for the new look of the blog_, Anais thought, making some settings on her camera, ready to take photos of the poor, more decadent side of Ryme City. Every once in a while, she would renew the look of her blog with fresh photos, depicting mostly those parts of the city not shown in the media: the deteriorated buildings, the patched roads, the walls covered in graffiti, the stray Pokemon whom no one cared for.

Those parts of the city, which no mayor or governor would pride themselves with, those were her goal. And they were perfect to illustrate the gap between social classes, the exact gap which she was writing about on her blog.

She was strolling on a road enclosed on one side by blocks of flats and on the other by a park. When the local river blocked her path, she turned left to enter the shadows underneath the bridge which further granted access to the rest of the road before her.

The bridge was long, and under it, on each side of the river, laid the usual things found under bridges in such neighborhoods: unneeded objects thrown away, rags, broken t.v. sets (_and here, dear readers, you can observe the correct usage of a t.v. set!_), dumping carts, intelligent graffiti.

She walked no more than a few meters under the bridge, along one side of it, when she heard a deep growl. Dark fur with bronze iridescence caught the faint rays of the evening sun, which were weakly pervading the shadows. Her small flashlight revealed two Arcanine, menacingly staring on top of a tall dumping cart full of garbage and showing their sharp pointed teeth protruding from their upper jaws to a much smaller Pokemon staring back at them from the peak of the garbage mountain.

Stray Pokemon weren’t uncommon in these areas of Ryme City, and, just like in the wild, they tended to get pretty territorial. Humans didn’t have many reasons to fear these Pokemon, since Ryme City was a human settlement after all. Despite a small restraint she had always felt towards Fire types, Anais paced determinedly towards the two Arcanine, who had noticed her and were patiently watching her, their attention temporarily diverted from the much smaller Pokemon on top of the garbage cart.

“Hey, leave it be!”, she addressed the canine Pokemon firmly. “Go find food elsewhere, you don’t even look too hungry anyway!”

The two canines took a few steps back, but did not walk away.

“Leave it alone, it is much smaller than you!”, she did not give in, knowing however that in the case of Pokemon size wasn’t always directly proportional to strength.

But these two Arcanine didn’t look stray to her. They looked well taken care of. With their black eyes reflecting back the light cast on their faces by Anais’ flashlight, their muscular bodies tense and the orange fur in which liquid gold seemed to play, these were no tramps. But what were they doing here and why were they picking on the other Pokemon, who, no doubt, was pretty stray?

“Go away, or I’ll call Pokemon Care!”, she made one more attempt to make them leave.

This seemed to work, as the two Arcanine turned their backs on her and walked away. Stray or lost Pokemon didn’t like being caught by the Pokemon Care. This usually meant keeping them in captivity until an owner could be found and releasing them outside Ryme City if no owner could be found. Of course, most of the released Pokemon would just return to Ryme City, where food was plenty, even if not of the best quality. But the overall experience with the Pokemon Care remained stressful.

After the two canines left, Anais pointed her flashlight towards the peak of the garbage cart. A small Pokemon, who could easily fit on a human’s shoulder, looked back at her. Yellow fur (or brown, she couldn’t tell exactly because of the dirt) covered its small body and its piercing black eyes showed cleverness. It kept one ear raised on top of its head, probably trying to take in all the sounds of the City within hearing reach, and the other one sagged. Anais recognized it as a Pikachu by the red circles on its cheeks – the trademark of this species!

Pikachu was an unusual species for this part of the country. They usually preferred the temperate climate towards the North instead of the warmer temperatures of the Southern parts.

“Hey there,”, Anais approached the stray Pikachu, taking two steps towards the garbage mountain. It didn’t look scared, merely in expectation.

“Oh, I think I have something for you!”, and she rummaged in her bag, managing to find a small package of pretzels. “It is not the best food and it is a bit squishy, but definitely better than what you can find here… Catch!”

Anais threw the only half full package on top of the garbage mountain, nearly missing her target. Pikachu jumped for the package and caught it with expert precision. It was then when Anais noticed that something was not right with this Pikachu… Not right at all.

The Pikachu was missing almost all of its front left paw and a considerable part of its left ear, the one it kept sagged. It looked as if… It had been bitten by something much larger than itself… This hinted at the illegal Pokemon battles held in Ryme City. _Poor soul_, Anais thought. But she knew better than call the Police or Pokemon Care. She knew very well that, if the authorities actually _wanted_ to put an end to the illegal battles, they would have very well done it.

Rather than eating the pretzels, the Pikachu seemed more interested in staring down at Anais, as if studying her, which made her feel a bit uneasy.

“Hey, I’ll just… I’ll just mind my own business, ok? I’ll be dropping by to leave more food these days, how’s that?”

But Pikachu didn’t answer, it just stood there.

* * *

It was late at night when Anais was rummaging in her bag on the floor of the block of flats for the keys to her small rented apartment. Just when she was opening the door, her attention was distracted by the noise of terracottta hitting concrete.

She quickly turned around to see the decorative flower pot on the floor knocked down. This was strange, since there was nothing which could have done that. But she arranged the flower pot in its normal position anyway and entered the apartment.

_What a day, I will be doing a lot of editing before uploading the photos to the blog_, Anais thought, as she was tiredly getting undressed. Before she lazily threw herself on the bed, she saw something impossible to ignore.

The stray Pikachu she had just fed, more or less, the one with almost all of its front left paw and a chunk of its left ear missing. It was standing on top of the bookcase, watching her. It was clearly tense, as it couldn’t tell Anais’ reaction.

“Hey…”, Anais said stupefied. “Smart move with the flower pot, what can I say…”

Seeing that she would probably not get hysterical, the Pikachu relaxed a bit, his one right ear getting less pricked up.

Anais was too tired to think about what to do with the stray Pikachu, who had entered her apartment with such insolence. She would probably take a decision the next day. If she decided to keep the Pokemon, she was not sure she would be a good owner. She loved Pokemon, but never actually owned one.

As a child, her parents would always say they didn’t have enough money, when Anais asked them to let her keep a Pokemon. Years passed by, her interests switched and her desires changed, and she ceased asking her parents for a Pokemon. When she reached adulthood, she became too involved in work, especially since working in one of Clifford’s corporations meant long hours and no free time, albeit also lots of money.

A few years in Clifford’s corporation were enough for her to understand the abuse and decide to no longer be subject to it. She would accept a much more modest life, totally different than that of a corporatist robot, with all the financial sacrifice she had to make. _Better sell your clothes, than your soul_, was her motto.

With this unexpected guest suddenly taking over the bookcase, she was at a loss. _It is like a Pokemon has chosen me,_ was her last thought before falling asleep.

The first thing she saw when she woke up was Pikachu sniffing around the apartment, exploring every corner of it. When he – Anais could tell it was male by the shape of its tail, thank God at least its tail was whole! – finished with the apartment, he proceeded to the small balcony.

“If you want to stay here, you’re gonna have to take a bath”, Anais addressed Pikachu matter-of-factly from in front of her lap top, after he was back from investigating the balcony and what it could offer.

“Pikaaaaa?”, Pikachu said totally taken aback, as if he was not at all familiar with the concept of taking a bath. It was the first time Anais heard his voice and it melted her heart. Childish, yet with an untamed tinge to it. This is no stray Pokemon. A stray Pokemon, let alone a wild one, wouldn’t be so relaxed when confined in a small apartment, and wouldn’t immediately start investigating every corner of the flat as if they were the owner.

“So you can talk, that is great! Are you aware how cute you are?”

“Pi-ka!”

“But this won’t save you from having to take a bath!”

“Pikaaaaaa!”, Pikachu protested.

“But why are you so scared of a simple bath?”, Anais asked distrustfully. “Look, you just have to take a bath once and then it will be over with.”, she got up and approached Pikachu, who took two steps back. It didn’t seem scared, but merely playful and wanting to get on her nerves a bit.

“Look! The landlord doesn’t even accept Pokemon in his flat, let alone dirty ones from the streets”, she made one more attempt to get close to Pikachu, at which point the Pokemon seemed to turn into a golden arrow of light and in a split second was again standing on top of the bookcase.

“Was that Volt Tackle?”, she asked flabbergasted. _You are no stray Pokemon at all!_, she was now sure. _Volt Tackle takes a lot of training to master and this Pikachu seems to master the move with precision!_

“Wow… You really are something, aren’t you?”

Pikachu was just watching her triumphantly from on top of the bookcase, knowing that she had no way to get there, at least not without climbing on top of a chair.

It was clear that she won’t be able to get Pikachu to take a bath this way. She needed to use other means. If the landlord made one of his unexpected visits and saw the dirt in the flat, both Pikachu and Anais would be thrown out. It seemed that Pikachu wasn’t troubled by this issue, since, with that cuteness, he could probably easily find another place to stay.

_But what is your story?_, Anais thought one evening, a few days after the Pikachu had arrived and after the bath incident was, temporarily, put aside.

Judging by the way it burst into her apartment after seeing her just once after the Arcanine incident, it seemed Pikachu was looking for a shelter. _Are you running away from something?_, Anais asked Pikachu in her mind. The Electric type also seemed well trained, the Volt Tackle he had performed in her apartment a day after he had crushed in was clear proof of that. And the handicap affecting his body could indicate that Pikachu was running away from an abusive trainer. There wasn’t a single week without news of Pokemon abuse broadcasted by CNM.

Of course, there were many great, sensitive trainers out there. But there was also the abusive type, who got involved in illegal battles for money or pushed their Pokemon to their limits and beyond.

* * *

This Pikachu was familiar with domestic life, but on the other hand, would have probably been much happier outside. He turned the balcony to his bedroom, always sleeping outside, on top of a heap of old objects left there by the landlord.

This gave Anais an idea of how to force Pikachu into getting a bath, but without actually forcing it.

One day, Anais patiently waited for Pikachu to leave the apartment, going on one of his daily escapades in the neighborhood. He would always jump from the balcony onto the branch of the nearest tree, as if his handicap wasn’t a hindrance to him, and be gone. After he left, she removed the heap of lumber, which Pikachu had turned into his bed, from the balcony. She then carefully lined the interior of the balcony with cellophane, put the heap of lumber back to where it was, and waited for the evening, when Pikachu would come back and fall asleep in his outdoor “bed”.

Things happened as expected. Thanks to Pikachu always sleeping like a log, probably tired after wandering through the neighborhood, her plan had a high chance of success. She was relying on the fact that Pikachu was running away from something and thus wouldn’t halloo.

When Pikachu was fast asleep, Anais half-opened the window of the living room opening to the balcony and placed a small tube out the window, in the balcony. The tube was connected to her sink, and she just let the water flow. Due to the cellophane lining, the walls of the balcony wouldn’t get damaged and the balcony could easily be turned into a pool, in the middle of which Pikachu was still sleeping in his improvises bed.

The water level had risen a bit and Anais was wondering when Pikachu would actually wake up.

Pikachu sleepily opened one eye. He saw Anais standing in front of him, on the small balcony, with a triumphant smile on her face and one bottle of Pokemon shampoo in her hand.

“Piiiii?”, he drowsily uttered.

The Pokemon came to only to see that his “bedroom” was now a pool and he pretty much had no choice but to take a bath. He looked at Anais reproachfully.

“Look. You are stubborn as hell, you know? But you are forgetting something: I am like that, too!”

She poured a few drops of Pokemon shampoo in her palm, carefully watched by Pikachu, who began to have a defeated expression.

“Just a bit of this and a bit of water, and we are done with this! This will only be hard if you make it hard. Please, let’s not wake the whole neighborhood up”, she emphasized what she hoped was Pikachu’s weakness at that point.

A bit fearful, although hoping not to show this to Pikachu, she poured the Pokemon shampoo from her palm on the Pokemon’s head and back. To her luck, the best-case scenario happened, and Pikachu did not get hysterical, nor did he electrocute her.

Although uncooperative, Pikachu at least did not put up resistance. In a few minutes they were done. Pikachu was sparkling, even if not with electricity. With the most downcast expression Anais had ever seen on a Pokemon’s face, his short fur soaking wet and ears sagged on his head, Pikachu could melt even the coldest of hearts at this point.

“You are just the cutest thing in existence!”, Anais giggled.

She took some shots of the miserable Pikachu with her phone and then showed Pikachu the screen.

“Look, this is you!”

But Pikachu wasn’t amused at all and his expression gave away the fact that he was getting angry.

Anais relieved the balcony of water through a small pipe protruding through the balcony wall and opening outside, which she had corked up. She then opened the door of the balcony leading inside to the living room, leaving it up to Pikachu to sleep on the pile of lumber, or come in bed, now that he was all clean.

Anais went to bed, but not before posting one of Pikachu’s photos on Instagram and tagging it with such things as # break_from_anti-capitalism_fight # mynewfriend # hedoesntthinkthisway # Pikachu # bathtime # timeforabath # littleelectricfriend # bathisfun # atleastforme # thecuteness # howcansomethingbesocute # pikapika

The first thing Anais saw when she woke up was a treasure in the middle of the room. Her eyes searched for Pikachu and found him on top of the bookcase, looking down at her and – she could swear – smirking in a way.

“You did _not_ just do this…”


	5. Those Were the Days

Life is hard when you have no money, and Ash didn’t have any. On a lighter note, it was summer holiday, or at least it was so for the teenagers who were still going to school, which wasn’t Ash’s case anymore.

Soon, Ash and Pikachu would finally get some food. The rest of the month would go on like this, until Ash’s next monthly allowance for Pokemon trainers from the Pokemon League. Unfortunately, the monthly allowance never sufficed Ash for a whole month.

After climbing the tree, of which one branch led straight to the attic window, Ash managed to heave his body inside the attic of the roadside restaurant. He found himself alone in a long semi obscure hall. Dust particles were dancing in the pencil of rays pervading the window. But the narrow light beam was enough to help Ash find what he needed.

Assembled on the wall opposing the window were bundles of pipes, some of which penetrating the roof, others spread on the wall with no apparent logic and others leading to the lower floors, through the boarded floor of the attic.

All he needed was to find the pipe with an open end and which led downwards, through the floor. That was the one pipe communicating with the restaurant kitchen. Luckily for Ash – and this was one of the advantages of being a sociable person who made friends easily, everywhere – he found it quickly.

He approached the pipe and, with his mouth near the open end of the pipe and one hand holding his nose, he uttered:

“We are aliens. We have come from far away to take over. Obey us, or feel the consequences!”

No later than one second after finishing his speech, the stifled screams of the kitchen personnel reached the attic through the same pipe and Ash knew the operation was a success. After no second thoughts, he continued:

“Don’t panic, Earthlings! Panicking won’t help. If you surrender peacefully, we will be mild!”

Muffled screams and voices carried on, this time accompanied by the distant sounds of footsteps. This could only mean that the personnel was leaving the kitchen and Pikachu could do his part undisturbed.

Ash ran back to the window, threw himself straight on the tree branch which had led him there, and, with scratches and bruises, made it to the ground. In front of the restaurant there was a bustle, but there was no time to enjoy the show. Ash jumped to his feet and made a run for it straight towards the roadside grove. He was heading to the meeting place, where Pikachu and himself would reunite, in the hopes of not starving for the next couple of days.

“Pikapi!” came the familiar voice of his best friend from between the trees.

Pikachu was triumphantly standing on the ground, holding on to a filled-up bag larger than himself.

“Awesome, Pikachu, great job!” Ash exclaimed and affectionately stroked Pikachu’s head between the ears.

“Pika pikaa!” Pikachu reacted to his best friend and trainer’s display of love.

“Let’s see what you’ve got Pikachu!”

And Ash took the food items out of the bag and quickly examined them before putting them down, in a sort of frugal inventory. It seemed like they had enough food for the next few days, possibly even until the next allowance from the Pokemon League.

“And you also brought some ketchup, how cool!” he blurted, taking out the last item in Pikachu’s bag, which was, indeed, a bottle of ketchup.

“Well, I’m starving, let’s eat something before we head on, what do you say?”

“Pi-ka!” Pikachu agreed.

And they both sat down in the middle of the grove and devoured some of their prize. Soon, the sun would set and another night under the starry sky would follow, since Ash hadn’t been fast enough in finding a near-by motel. But what did the lack of a decent bed mean, when you had your best friend with you?

Suddenly a cold wind started blowing. Before they knew it, heavy murky clouds covered the whole sky. A silver lightning bold cut the sky from horizon to horizon and dense water drops started falling.

Ash quickly pulled the rain cape out of his back pack and covered Pikachu and himself with the waterproof fabric, pulling the Pokemon close to him. They were both safe underneath the cape, but Ash’s eyes were watery because some of the water drops managed to get to him before he took the cape out. He tried to wipe out the water from his eyes with his hand, but no matter what he did, his eyes were still watery.

“What the…?” he mumbled, as his sight got even blurrier until nothing was recognizable any more.

Ash Ketchum woke up.

He had fallen asleep on the chair in front of his lap top again. He was confused and his eyes stung. It had been yet another of those recent dreams, the ones where subconscious and memories melt into one.

It had been one year since Pikachu ran away. One year of never-ending searches throughout the whole country, with no results: internet banners, newspaper articles, outdoor posters on walls, the mobilization of all his friends and acquaintances, even a short t.v. report. Until now, all efforts had been in vain, in despite of the substantial reward for finding the Pokemon, but Ash would not have any peace until he found his friend again.

He ran out of ideas of how to find Pikachu. No matter how much his mind constantly raced for answers and his memories always stopped in front of a single being, nothing helped. Wanting to take a break from the searching session of the evening, he teared his eyes away from the monitor and looked out the window.

The evening sun was embracing Pallet Town. The town preserved its soothing atmosphere during all the years when Ash had been away. Green fields and forests of green, welcoming households, the happy voices of kids playing outside, Professor Oak’s lab…

His reverie was interrupted by the beeping noise coming from the lap top, letting Ash know he had a new message. With his heart beating faster despite all the past disappointments, he opened the message. It wasn’t what he had hoped for, nor what he would have ever imagined. The message came from an anonymous sender and contained an audio recording attached. Without thinking whether this might be a virus – typical for Ash – he opened the audio file.

<<“I am sure everything will go according to the plan”>>

Ash couldn’t exactly tell whose voice this was, but it undoubtedly came from an unpleasant individual. He continued listening, until he was sure the owner of the voice was downright evil.

<<“Then, after everyone is nice and panicked, we will bring them the cure, of course, all promoted by CNM. I will be counting on you to do a good job.”>>

_CNM, what is that?! Must be a t.v. channel from the country, gotta look into it_, Ash thought while listening.

The next section of the recording was jammed by interference, however Ash could tell the general idea of it all and was beginning to fear the worst.

<<“The vaccine will at first be optional. After a few months <interference> make it compulsory for all Pokemon owned by humans. It will be your job to <interference> , unless the human partners have their Pokemon vaccinated, their beloved friends will fall victims to the malady.”>>

_Pikachu!_, his thoughts raced towards his lost friend.

<<“(…) But, at a closer look, you get an understanding of how our Pokemon partners influence us: humans have become more free spirited, spend more time in nature instead of working for our corporations and obediently watching t.v., are harder to control. In order to make capitalism thrive once again, we must break this link. And our vaccine will do just that! You, Ms. McMaster, will be generously rewarded for your cooperation.”>>

_Screw you!_, Ash jumped to his feet.

“Yes, unlike most humans, Pokemon are free! They obey us because they want to, not because they have to! They show their feelings and attack when provoked! They don’t backstab, they don’t have hesitations, they don’t have expectations! They have no master! They are free spirited and neither you, nor anyone else will change this!”

Before he knew it, Ash realized he had been yelling at his lap top for the past minute.

He managed to calm down a bit. What were the known facts? That some psychopaths from Ryme City were secretly developing a vaccine designed for Pokemon, vaccine which would destroy the bond between Pokemon and their human partners.

How exactly would the vaccine do this, was unknown to Ash, and with his lack of formal education he couldn’t get close to a scientific explanation.

Unfortunately for everyone in the country, Ryme City was the financial center of the state. It exerted great influence over the whole country. If the vaccine was made compulsory in Ryme City, changes were, it would soon be compulsory everywhere.

_Pikachu!_, Ash’s thoughts raced again to his electric friend.

_If I found you, I would have the strength to go against Clifford! If I found you, I would keep you safe from all the vaccines and medicines and crapitalism or what’s it called and bullshit! Where are you?_

Tears were rolling down his face, as he sat down in front of the lap top to continue the search for his lost friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think now is the right moment to specify some things about the story line. I am starting from the idea that in “Indigo League”, Ash is about 16, and not 10, like in canon. Given the fact that this fan fic takes place 10 years after “Indigo League”, that would make Ash about 26. But the main reason I am changing Ash’s age is Pikachu. If Ash was 10 in “Indigo Leage” and if I want to have him be 26 in this fan fic, it would mean that the fic happens 16 years after “Indigo League”. Pikachu is not exactly a cub when Ash receives him, so sticking to Ash’s canon age would mean Pikachu would be around 17-18 in this fic. I don’t know which is the canon life span of a Pikachu, but I really want Pikachu to be younger. Hence: in my fic Ash is 16 in “Indigo League”, 26 in present, Pikachu is 1-2 years old in “Indigo League” and 11-12 years old in present.  
Another mention: I only saw the first 2 seasons of the anime when I was a child. And from the rest of the seasons, I only saw a few episodes. So, please excuse any inconsistencies. I don’t mean to be 100% faithful to the canon, but also don’t want to deviate very much from the canon.


	6. Arrow

Anais was walking through a neighborhood from the outskirts of Ryme City, accompanied, as usual, by her camera. For a long time she had felt that the camera was her best friend: always there when she needed it, helping her to send out her message just the way she wanted to. Technology never hurt one on purpose, and this was why she liked it. _One could also say this about Pokemon_, she pondered.

She had left the balcony door open in order for Pikachu to be able to return inside the flat from his daily escapade outdoors whenever he wanted to. Ever since Pikachu unexpectedly entered the apartment she would always leave the balcony door open, as Pikachu was a ball of energy and needed to get out and, regretfully, Anais never had enough time to play with him. She trusted that he would stay out of trouble.

Anais and Pikachu weren’t exactly partners. But they were becoming friends. There was something strange about Pikachu. Even though, after the bath incident, she clearly told him he could sleep in bed, he still preferred the balcony, as if in the memory of some long-gone days, when he slept under the night sky. Even when given the comfort of a cozy room, he still preferred the cool night breeze of Ryme City from a shelter which wasn’t too comfortable, at least not in her opinion. But she never protested, she let him do his things.

Although friendly after a couple of weeks of living together, he never jumped into her arms, like Pokemon do when they have a human partner, nor did he seek too much attention. He was obviously mistrustful of people and she could understand this very well. It must have had to do with his handicap.

Once she had brought the subject up. No doubt he could understand her very well and, thanks to his astonishing expressiveness, she could understand the ideas he was communicating, as well as his feelings. When she asked him what caused his issues, he just turned his back on her and settled on the pile of lumber on the balcony, which had been his bed ever since he came.

After this she never brought the subject up again. She imagined everything must have been a painful experience for Pikachu, physically, as well as emotionally. Bonding with a Pokemon didn’t happen overnight and she was just happy to share her apartment with someone. Even if that someone was more like a tenant, who wasn’t paying his part of the rent.

Lost in her thoughts, she didn’t see the two men blocking her way forward. Each of them had a mocking grin on his face and was accompanied by an Arcanine.

“If you’ll excuse me…” she uttered slightly annoyed, trying to squeeze herself between the two men, but one of them blocked her way.

“Hey, what’s your problem?!” she almost yelled. “The camera is bad quality, it’s really not worth the effort!”

But as she tried to slip past the hooligan, it was his mate’s turn to block her way. Without a word, she turned around to make a run for it, but the two Arcanine were making it impossible for her to run in the opposite direction. Uneasy, she turned again to the two hooligans.

“Look, I don’t have money, ok?!”

“Heh, it is not money we’re after,” one of them said in a disgustingly sluggish voice. It was now that she noticed both men wore dark blue clothes. And it was the same dark blue of the HC Corp. logo – the logo of the corporation she had worked for. She suddenly felt uneasy. Did they want to make her pay for her blog articles?

_Well, good luck with that, idiots, I regret nothing!_, she thought, determined to get rid of them… somehow.

“Anais Mathews, isn’t it?” the other thug asked.

“It seems that you already know me, so get to the point,” Anais said undisturbed. Clifford’s people weren’t the smartest, so this was one less worry for her. But they were the most ambitious and ferocious.

“Miss Mathews, we don’t want to cause you any discomfort…” said the first hooligan.

“You are failing miserably…” she interrupted, to which the thug continued:

“We just want you to delete your blog. You know very well why. Just one click of a button and everything is deleted, and we will never bother you again.”

“If you studied your employees’ psychology, you would know very well I won’t delete anything.”

“Miss Mathews, we can offer a significant reward, if you just delete your blog.”

“If I could afford a decent printer, I would be printing your reward as we’re talking, so no thank you,” she answered briefly and made yet another attempt to squeeze herself between the two ruffians in the HC logo color clothes.

Only this time, a stealthy fist wrapped itself around her wrist and pulled her hand to her back. She was panicked, but steadfast in not letting anything show. She stood stone-still and gritted her teeth awaiting the inevitable pain. One of the two ruffians whispered in her ear, looking down on her:

“Screaming won’t help…”

“No shit, do you have any more original lines?” Anais whispered back and returned his glare.

“Ms. Mathews, you are not cooperating. I ask you for the last time: will you delete your blog, or do I have to break your arm?”

“Breaking my arm won’t help, you’d have to break my mouth to make me stop talking -” but the sudden pain in her elbow made her interrupt her sentence.

_Pikachu!_, her thoughts darted to the Pokemon. _But if I called for him, would he hear me, and if he heard me, would he come?_

Before finishing her thought, she caught a glimpse of a trace of golden light flying in the air at high speed and hitting the thug who was holding her wrist straight in the forehead. The man fell on his knees, blood pouring out of his nose, and Anais was free to move again.

Pikachu was on the ground in front of her, his little body tense, ears pointing backwards, tail upwards and sparkling eyes locked into hers, as if waiting for a command.

Taking advantage of the perplexity of the two ruffians and their Arcanine companions, Anais took a few steps back and yelled to Pikachu:

“Pikachu, use Thunderbolt, now!”

Without a split second’s delay, Pikachu hit the two hooligans, as well as their Arcanine with an outburst of electricity, which made Anais see purple stars. After the attack, all four opponents were grunting on the ground, but there was no time for puzzlement, as they would soon come to their senses.

“Quick! Let’s run away from here!” Anais shouted.

And they ran without looking back. They ran through narrow, winding alleys, past worn out buildings and shiny neon advertisements. Anais even bumped into passersby a few times, but that didn’t slow her down. Ignoring the pricking pain in her elbow, she continued running, with Pikachu alongside her.

They only stopped at the margins of the neighborhood, on the shore of the huge Ryme Lake, the lake which majestically bit into the city. Anais fell on the grass, lungs stinging, and only then she realized she was crying.

It was not because of the fear, because the two hooligans barely managed to stir an ounce of worry in her. It was not because of the intimidations, because she had seen ferocious corporatists before, whose bodies were not connected to their brains and thus, never appeared menacing to her. Not because of the pain in her elbow, or the loneliness.

She was crying solely due to the fact that Clifford’s corporation was underestimating her in such a manner, that it actually thought throwing money at her – the “significant reward” the goon mentioned – would make her delete her blog_. Just who the fuck do you take me for?_

“I will never, ever delete my blog! I won’t stop when your stupid, idiotic, brainless gorillas threaten me…” she whispered, managing to calm down a bit.

After taking a few deep breaths, she noticed Pikachu sitting in the grass and staring at her, as if worried. She felt bad for being so engulfed in anger and frustration that she forgot to thank him.

“Pikachu…”

She reached for him and gently stroked Pikachu between his ears, as he had always liked that. Pikachu relaxed and let out a small giggle in his sweet voice, which could also get loud and aggressive when angered.

“Thank you so much. I …”

But then Pikachu fell on his back, with his belly upwards, watching Anais. At first hesitant, not sure if this was what Pikachu wanted, she tickled the Pokemon on his belly and the sounds he made were the cutest thing Anais had ever heard.

“So you like that, huh?” and she continued fiercely.

After some time, the sun set and they were both exhausted, sitting side by side on the grass on the lakeside, watching the tall glass buildings on the other side and their reflection in the water. The world was peaceful here, far away from the noise, crowds and traffic of the other side.

“If we’re gonna stick together, you’ll need a name,” Anais told Pikachu after a while.

“Piii?” came the confused answer.

“How about Arrow? Would you like that? Because you’re as fast as an arrow!”

“Pi-ka!” exclaimed Arrow, obviously liking Anais’ choice for a name.

They stood in silence for a few minutes. Anais loosened her hair pin, letting her wild dark locks fall on her shoulders. She then fixed the hair pin around Arrow’s long ears, or one long ear and what was left of the other, facing his confused expression with a smirk.


	7. To Ryme City!

At the sportsbook from Pallet Town it was a bustle. This was the last night when people could wager regarding the first round of the next Pokemon League Conference from the country, which would be held in the Galar Region.

Although Pallet Town was a small town, it had a tradition in raising the best Pokemon trainers from the country and was also home of one of the best technologically equipped Pokemon research facilities. Another thing which flourished were the betting affairs regarding Pokemon battles.

Rows of tables filled the long room, ending at the bar. Behind the bar’s personnel, which in time had become used to the hustle taking place before each well known Pokemon competition, a huge screen reigned on the wall.

The screen displayed columns, each column dedicated to one pair of competing trainers from the first round of the Galar Pokemon League Conference. At the beginning of each column, the names of two competing trainers were written down in red letters. Below, each possible battling Pokemon pair was listed.

One earned a certain amount, if they placed their bets on the winning Pokemon from a battling pair which actually materialized. But that amount got smaller, if more gamblers placed their bets on the same Pokemon from the aforementioned battling pair. The fewer the gamblers placing their bets on the winning Pokemon, the bigger the amount a gambler would earn. The trick was to bet where no one else had the courage to and be lucky enough that your best bet would also win.

And, of course, one could also place their bets on a Pokemon from a hypothetical battling pair and have the surprise that that exact battling pair never materialized. Those were the losing gamblers.

“I bet on Volkner’s Raichu against Homer’s Steelix!” a resolute voice could be heard from one of the long tables.

Everyone in the room recognized the voice as Ash’s. Ash laid the weirdest, most illogical wagers. But somehow, in the most unexplainable ways and possibly only due to certain star alignments, he almost always won.

This was why most of the gamblers refrained from commenting, objecting, making stupid jokes or downright laughing at Ash.

Volkner’s Raichu, while the third evolution of an Electric type and also very skilled would probably be up against a Steelix, a dual type, both Ground and Steel. While Electric types were totally ineffective against Ground types, they could cause significant damage to Steel types, and Steelix was both. On the other hand, Steelix could perform a mega evolution, while Volkner’s Raichu was – at least not until now – unable to. It was hard to lay a wager on anyone from this hypothetical pair.

But, of course, there are always stupid people, and they get even more so when drunk, who challenge everything and make fun of everything.

One such individual was Gary Oak, who, in a drunken frenzy and holding on to a glass of beer on the counter, yelled:

“Ha! Ha! Ha! Who would believe such a thing? Everyone knows Homer’s Steelix can beat the shit out of Volkner’s Raichu!” and then looked around the hall for the approval which never came.

“Gary you’re drunk…” Ash said.

“It is only temporary… ha ha… on the other had you are stupid and that is permanent…”

“Hey, you two!” interrupted a third voice, that of the bar tender. “Take it outside or lower the volume! Some people are trying to have a decent gamble here!”

“Gary, you can’t think straight,” Ash tried to appease Gary, but, as things proved to be, had no chance of succeeding.

“Well, you can’t think at all! Ha! Ha!”

The well known rivalry between the two trainers based in Pallet Town had only gotten worse over the years, as Ash constantly defeated Gary in battle, strangely, without anyone believing Ash would actually win against Gary. It seemed that Gary would never forgive Ash for that.

Stupidly, Gary continued:

“You are only betting on Raichu because it reminds you of Pikachu, admit it… ha, ha…”

But Ash’s fist interrupted Gary’s drunken grumbling. Gary fell on the floor, arms holding on to his stomach, exactly where the fist hit.

“Don’t you dare bring that up, you idiot!” Ash yelled at Gary. “If you ever bring that up, I swear I’ll beat the shit out of _you_!”

Ash was breathing heavily and was held by the strong arms of other gamblers from that room, who were hindering Ash from doing something completely stupid that night. With his mind wandering from Gary, Ash was brutally pushed outside the Pallet Town sportsbook, or gently thrown out, both were true.

Without looking back at the sportsbook and pleased that he laid one of his best wagers yet, Ash headed to his apartment.

* * *

It was a little past midnight when Ash entered his small apartment, because – even if you earn significant amounts as a gambler – why would you need a large space, when you are alone?

Ash had recently gotten his hands on a software. This particular software was indeed very useful and it had come at an incredibly low price. All you had to do was give the software a photo, and, after a few hours of running, it displayed all similar photos uploaded on the internet.

During the last month Ash had given the software a photo of Pikachu – _his_ Pikachu – and let the software run, in the hopes that he could find a photo of his friend online. From then on, he would track down his electric friend. Until now the software delivered no useful results, only false alarms.

The software had finished its task a while before Ash returned from the sportsbook.

Ash sat down in front of the lap top, skimming through the rows of online photos of various Pikachu. Photo, after photo, after photo… they all looked almost the same, some cute, some menacing, some playful, some sleepy, but none was his…

…Wait a second!

Ash stopped at one photo.

This was him, he was unmistakable! Ash’s eyes were instantly drawn to those physiological aspects, which - unfortunately - helped Ash recognize his Pikachu from a million. The Pikachu with half of his front left paw missing. The Pikachu with a chunk of his left ear bitten off. The Pokemon with marks that would last a lifetime.

Ash’s heart was pounding louder than before any Pokemon League battle, as if it would leap from his chest any time. With a trembling hand, he clicked on the photo of his Pikachu. The Instagram page where the photo had been posted opened.

So, someone took a photo of his Pikachu and uploaded it on Instagram? Under other circumstances Ash would have found the situation hilarious, but not now. The photo had been uploaded on Instagram three months ago. This probably meant that someone had adopted Pikachu at least three months ago.

_Lucky person!_, Ash thought. _Pikachu doesn’t accept anyone easily!_

After the initial shock of finally recognizing his long lost friend, Ash noticed the details. Pikachu was soaking wet. His ears were sagging, water dripping from the tip of his right ear. And his expression was the most miserable one Ash had ever seen on Pikachu’s face.

And was this a balcony filled with water Pikachu was standing in? What was the owner trying to do, improvise a Jacuzzi in an apartment balcony?!

But what astounded Ash even more was the fact that Pikachu seemingly accepted someone giving him a bath. This was not something Pikachu would be very open to, at least when it came from a stranger.

_But maybe this new owner, whoever they are, isn’t a stranger to him_, Ash thought, and his heart stung in a way in which it hadn’t stung for a long time.

Judging by the tags - # bathtime, # bathisfun, # thecuteness # pikapika - the new owner was probably female and seemed to be a fun person. _She probably deserves him_, Ash pondered, and his heart ached.

But who was this person and, more importantly, where was she? After some searching on the Instagram account hosting Pikachu’s photo, Ash found what seemed to be the only photo of the account administrator and, most probably, Pikachu’s owner. Ash was right, the person was a woman. She was young, probably in her 20’s, just like Ash himself. She was sitting on a dilapidated fence, possibly enclosing a waste land. Unfortunately for Ash, who wanted to find out more, the sun was shining right behind the person and this made it hard to get any details of her.

But Ash could tell she was pretty. Her dark curly hair fell in wild locks on her shoulders, it seemed a bit like she had been electrocuted, but Ash hoped this wasn’t the case. Her stance and the fact that she didn’t want to be too recognizable suggested the will to keep people at distance.

Since her Instagram username gave no clue about her identity, Ash clicked on her username hoping to find some relevant information on her profile page.

<< Anais. Ryme City. >> was all that the profile communicated.

_Ryme City, great!_, Ash panicked. _Pikachu, you couldn’t have chosen a worse place than that!_

Ryme City, where the former governor, Howard Clifford, had been locked in jail 5 years ago, under the accusations of mistreating Pokemon. Ryme City, where the local media was rehabilitating his image, so as to make people trust Clifford again. Ryme City, where Clifford and his companions were secretly working on a vaccine destined for Pokemon, which would affect the partnership between humans and Pokemon. Ryme City, which could influence the decisions from the whole country due to its financial power. Ryme City, where corporations wanted to destroy the relation between humans and Pokemon, seeing it as a threat to capitalism.

_You couldn’t have chosen a worse place!_

But Ash understood very well Pikachu’s choice for a hiding place. Ryme City never got involved in the regions’ affairs related to Pokemon. As such, it was the perfect hiding place for a fugitive Pokemon with his picture up for most wanted.

Without hesitation, Ash booked a hotel room in Ryme City.

* * *

In a city of 9 million, which were the odds of finding a certain individual, when you only had her first name, an unclear Instagram photo and some information about her Pokemon?

_Not high_, Ash had to admit, watching Ryme City from the balcony of the hotel room he had rented for an indefinite period. Luckily for him, the wager he had laid the night he had punched Gary was a successful one and paying for the room was not an issue.

Ryme City wasn’t what he was used to. It contained too much steel, concrete and glass and too little trees. The city lights overpowered the evening light of the sky. People seemed to be in a hurry and Ash was wondering if the places they were rushing to were worth the hustle.

It was hard for him to start a conversation with anyone. But that didn’t bother him, since he was really good at communicating with Pokemon.

“Hey, could you help me find a good detective in Ryme City?” Ash asked the Aipom, who had the habit of dropping by in the balcony each evening since Ash had arrived to the hotel, by swinging from the nearby lamp posts.

Ash showed Aipom his tablet, where the private detective bureaus from Ryme City were already listed.

Aipom took the tablet and scrolled up and down the list for a few minutes, with a concentrated expression on its face. At one point it stopped to dwell upon a name in the list. It then handed back the tablet to Ash, pointing at one private detective bureau.

“Thanks Aipom, I owe you one!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Gary Oak is one of Ash’s rivals from the anime. I believe most of you know this, but I wanted to make sure.


	8. A Shocking Encounter

On a Sunday morning while still in pajamas, Anais went out of her apartment to water the plants on the block floor. The morning was cold, the unpleasantly cool air filled the floor.

Anais got near the large ficus adorning the floor of the block of flats, when suddenly, a wild idiot appeared in front of her. She didn’t have time to protest, because the young man, who looked as if he had spent at least the last few days sleeping in the streets, asked agitated:

“Anais Mathews?”

“Hey, if you are from HC you’d better forget about it…”

But this was strange, he didn’t quite look like a brainless hooligan. Anais side-stepped the young man, but he blocked her way again.

“I don’t know what HC is, but you’ve gotta listen to me!”

“Your mates were more professional, you know… Leave it and find another purpose in life…” Anais answered, amused at the intern’s puzzled expression.

She side-stepped again, but the young man got in front of her, almost slipping and falling in the large flower pot of the ficus just when Anais was about to water the plant.

Anais got annoyed, but couldn’t help the feeling that she had seen this guy before. He looked oddly familiar and she could recognize the Kanto region accent.

“Don’t I know you from somewhere?!” and his attitude of not giving a crap about what others think of him and the black uncombed hair standing in all directions rang the bell. The sudden flashback of the battles from the Pokemon Leagues broadcasted live confirmed the supposition.

“Oh wait… Oh no…You are Ash Ketchum!”

“You are right! And I know you have my Pikachu, so please let me in.”

But Anais didn’t even want to hear about it.

In a split second she recalled t.v. images of the Pikachu who always went against Pokemon much larger than him and, on many occasions and against all odds, won. As a teenager, she used to watch the live broadcasts of the Pokemon Leagues from all across the country and Ash’s Pikachu had always been her favorite.

Her heart was pounding at the realization that Arrow was actually _that_ Pikachu!

But how did he get so mutilated…?

There was no time for memories and realizations, as Ash, without even asking for permission, was heading towards the door of her apartment. She ran in front of him, managing to block his way just in front of the door.

“No!” she hardly refrained from yelling, not wanting to attract the attention of the neighbors and, above all, to freak Arrow out. “Go away Ketchum, I mean it!”

“I just need to tell him something!”

“He doesn’t want to see you!” Anais blurted, feeling her heart sting in a way it had never stung before.

Surprised, Ash stepped back and asked incredulously:

“But how do you even know that?! Until now you didn’t know he is mine, so you couldn’t have possibly asked him if he wants to see me or not!”

“Stay away Ketchum, or I swear…”

But she stopped her sentence midway, as Ash shoved her out of the way and burst into her apartment. Anais dashed at him, managing to pour some cold water on him, but Ash was quick to slam the door in her face and lock her out. Outraged, she hit the now locked door with her fists.

“Ketchum, open the door this instant! But what is my apartment, anyway?!”

Ash answered from behind the door:

“I am sorry for everything! I just need a few minutes and then I’ll be gone!”

Since there was nothing left to be done, Anais pressed one ear against the door. Ash’s footsteps got more and more stifled as he walked further away from the door.

After a few seconds of silence, Anais heard Ash’s voice. She couldn’t make out what he was saying, but he sounded mournful.

Then she heard Arrow’s voice. And it was filled with a rage, which Anais had never heard before in the voice of a Pokemon. Arrow was not only answering to Ash’s laments, but it seemed that he was also attacking Ash, performing Thunderbolt after Thunderbolt on him.

Anais was getting worried. Not for Ash’s physical state, but for Arrow’s mental state.

She then heard Ash screaming for help, seemingly from the living room.

“Anais! Please, help me!”

“I can’t, idiot, you locked me out!” she yelled from the other side of the door.

After a few seconds of stifled footsteps, stumbling, falling and getting up again, the door opened and Ash burst out more eager than he had burst in moments before.

He was panting, his skin was red and his eyes teary. Seeing his state, Anais’ fury was replaced by pity.

“Arrow did quite a number on you, huh?”

“Arrow…?”

“He has a name. Finally.”

“I just wanted to ask for forgiveness, that’s all…”

But Anais cut him off.

“Ash. Please stay away from Arrow. He is a pure soul and doesn’t deserve any of this.”

Then, without any further remarks, she turned her back on him and entered the apartment.

The living room was a mess. The table and chair were knocked over and the bed spread laid on the floor. The reading lamp at the headboard was broken and the books which had been placed on the drawer near the bed were scattered on the floor, with pages ripped off. Books from the bookcase were also shattered on the ground.

Arrow was nowhere to be seen. He had probably run outside through the open balcony door. Anais knew that Arrow had just gotten through an emotional shock and she regretted it.

_Damn you, Ketchum,_ she thought. _If Arrow runs away it is all your fault._

* * *

In the evening, Anais was heading back home from a round of shopping for food. She was more at ease, as Arrow had come back shortly after the incident in the morning. Anais had barely been able to find the right words to ask Arrow for forgiveness for what happened. Arrow was acting as if Anais didn’t exist, ignoring her.

But she could tell Arrow actually had forgiven her, if he had been angry with her in the first place; he was merely playing with her. And this was all Anais needed to feel relieved.

Never in her dreams had she imagined that she would ever be the partner of a famous Pokemon, a Pokemon previously owned by a well known trainer, in this case Ash Ketchum. Although illegal in themselves, Pokemon League Conferences were broadcasted live with huge audience in Ryme City. Since she couldn’t afford having a Pokemon, Anais had eagerly watched the matches, always keeping her fingers crossed for the Pokemon who, at least apparently, had the least chances.

And Arrow… flew like an arrow, she could barely follow his moves across the arena, until he either won or fainted.

Until about a year ago, when Ash disappeared from all Pokemon Leagues…

Her train of thoughts was interrupted when a wild idiot appeared in front of her. And it was the same idiot from the morning.

“I thought I told you to go away!”

“Please, let me explain. I don’t need long!”

Ash looked as if he had recovered from the injuries caused by Arrow. But he was breathing hard, as if he had run for miles. He was obviously in distress. However, Anais felt no mercy for him.

“Ok, you’ve got five seconds.”

“Wait, that’s not…”

“Four.”

But before she could mock him even more to make up for what he had done to Arrow, Ash burst into tears.

* * *

An hour later, they were sitting on a bench on the shore of the Ryme Lake. Ash had stopped crying and calmed down somewhat. Now he sat motionlessly, eyes watching the horizon, but giving the impression that he was actually seeing something else.

Anais had to give in and help him get a grip on himself, otherwise the whole neighborhood would have started staring at them. And Ash didn’t have a good reputation in Ryme City amongst that part of the population who was strongly against Pokemon battles.

Anais was slightly embarrassed, as she hadn’t seen an adult crying for so long for a long time. For lack of a better idea for ending the awkward moment, she said:

“Please don’t do anything stupid.”

Ash didn’t stir. Just when Anais was getting ready for the next cramped intervention, he answered lowly:

“I don’t think there are any more stupid things left for me to do.”

Relieved that Ash seemed to have gotten a grip on himself, Anais wanted to suggest that they go, each to their own home, but Ash continued talking.

“I was rolling, you know. It all started after the Alola League nine years ago. After winning my first League, I felt like I had wings. And without me even believing I was able of such performance, I started winning League after League, with few exceptions… Everything was going great and my Pokemon and I had the best relation a trainer could have with their Pokemon.

It seemed as if Heaven would last forever, you know?

But my life drastically changed when my mother was diagnosed with leukemia. It was a rare form, not the type which has a treatment. Or at least an affordable treatment…

As a Pokemon trainer you don’t earn a salary, you know. You only get the monthly allowance from the Pokemon League and that is hardly ever enough. But for trainers this doesn’t matter. At least not for the most of them.

But with my mother’s illness, I was suddenly part of the others.

And to get money for my mother’s treatment, I resorted to what I’ve always hated: the illegal Pokemon battles.”

Anais had heard of these battles before, but didn’t know much about them. All she knew were the battles from the League Conferences, perfectly legal – except for Ryme City – and safe, organized in a transparent manner, where Pokemon had access to free medical care and where a referee was attentively supervising everything.

Even those battles had their share of exaggerated violence, at least in her opinion. So she got chills just imagining the degree of violence in the illegal battles Ash was talking about.

Her curiosity was stronger than the fear of the truth, so she didn’t interrupt Ash.

“You know… apart from the League Conferences and the Gym battles there is this other type of battles. If the police catch you, you get your trainer license confiscated and your Pokemon seized.

This is why you don’t find illegal battles in places you’ve heard of.

There are no rules and no one to stop the battle if it gets bloody. And the worst part is… in some regions, the League doesn’t pay for the medical care of the injured Pokemon involved in such battles… As if it’s the Pokemon’ fault they have idiotic trainers.

Anyway… I digress…

The only good thing about these battles is that you earn money. And depending on how good you are, you can earn a lot.

And I earned enough to help my mother. My Pokemon were always there to help me and I was always trying not to push their limits too much, to keep them away from getting injured…

Again it seemed that fate was on my side.

Until one day, a year and a half ago.

Pikachu was up against a Lugia.

Pikachu…”

Ash seemed for a moment on the edge of bursting into tears again. He swallowed hardly and continued, eyes still darting towards the horizon.

“He was always there to help me, you know? He was my best friend. And if you ever watched at least one of my matches, you know that!

Before that battle Pikachu seemed unstoppable. He was going through a period in which, it seemed that no other Pokemon could defeat him, let alone even injure him. Pokemon much stronger than him, he would beat them all. Legendary Pokemon as well. He was pushing his limits and I knew it, but I needed the money.

In that battle he was severely injured by that Lugia. And you can see the marks…In a split second there was blood everywhere and when Lugia downright bit a part of Pikachu, I ran in the ring and took Pikachu to the nearest Pokemon center.

The doctors could stabilize him. But he would remain mutilated for life.

And as if this isn’t enough…”

He paused for a moment to breath in and out.

“As if this isn’t enough… I wanted to force Pikachu to evolve.

Yes, I knew, or suspected, or thought… No, no, no… Idiots never think! Whatever was in my head, I only knew that I needed the money and believed that with such a massive handicap Pikachu would not be able to help me without getting stronger.

I didn’t even wait for him to fully recover.

When he was still hospitalized, I showed him the Thunderstone. Of course he knew what it was and what I was planning to do. He tried to bring me to my senses. But I just wouldn’t listen. He attacked me, then ran away and you know the rest.”

A heavy silence fell.

“Ash, look…”

“I know what I did was horrible, and although I deserve it, trust me that regret is the biggest punishment! And after Pikachu left, I started losing battle after battle after battle, until I had to realize I can’t do it without Pikachu. I gave away my Pokemon, or released them, and quit training. I simply can’t do it without him.

My mother died. All the money I earned by taking advantage of my Pokemon was of no use. I lost them, and I lost her, and judging me doesn’t help! But before you judge me, tell me something… Did you ever have to choose between your friends and your family?”

“No,” Anais answered promptly. “One shouldn’t sacrifice friends for family,” and then asked on a softer tone:

“Ash, how did you find me?”

“Ever since he ran away one year and a half ago, I’ve been searching for him ceaselessly. I _had_ to find him, at some point. Instagram helped a lot. I saw a photo of him on Instagram. He was impossible to mistake for another Pikachu. Then I found a photo of you, went straight to your profile and saw where you live, and from that point on it was easy. You have some really good private detectives in Ryme City, you know?”

And for the first time he seemed less in distress and the look in his eyes revealed a tiny bit of the prankish spirit he used to show in the live broadcasts.

“I wanted to find Pikachu… or Arrow,” he smiled. “And ask for forgiveness. I didn’t have the least intention to take him away from you. I wouldn’t have asked Pika… Arrow to come back. I just want his forgiveness, that is all.”

And after a short pause he added:

“And there is one more thing.”

“What do you mean…?” Anais asked, becoming uneasy and blaming herself for having let her guard down even for a little bit in front of, after all, a total stranger. Who knew what he was hiding? Another Thunderstone in his pants?!

But she didn’t have the time to object further, as Ash produced his phone and played a recording.

Clifford started talking.

<<“Ms. McMaster, I am counting on you to deliver the news to the masses, in such a way that people become frightened, and also believe you.”>>

Anais felt nauseous.

<<“I am sure everything will go according to the plan”>> the voice of Cynthia McMaster, chief journalist of news network CNM, announced.

Anais clenched her fists. But the repulsion and fury she felt against what seemed to be a secret recording, not of a conspiracy theory, but of a reality practice, were not strong enough to overtake her interest in this recorded conversation.

The recording kept playing.

<<“Here is a short little recap… First, you have to spread the fake news of a virus affecting Pokemon, and being only Pokemon to Pokemon transmitted. I leave the name of the disease up to you, since you journalists have more imagination than us.”>>

<<“Then, after everyone is nice and panicked, we will bring them the cure, of course, all promoted by CNM.”>>

<<“The vaccine will at first be optional. After a few months <interference> make it compulsory for all Pokemon owned by humans. It will be your job to <interference>, unless the human partners have their Pokemon vaccinated, their beloved friends will fall victims to the malady.”>>

<<“Ever since Ryme City became a Heaven for Pokemon, and one of the few places in the world where humans and Pokemon live in perfect harmony, our profits have gone down. “>>

<<“(…) at a closer look, you get an understanding of how our Pokemon partners influence us: humans have become more free spirited, spend more time in nature instead of working for our corporations and obediently watching t.v., are harder to control. In order to make capitalism thrive once again, we must break this link. And our vaccine will do just that! You, Ms. McMaster, will be generously rewarded for your cooperation.”>>

The recording stopped. Bits and pieces of it were reverberating in Anais’ mind and her sight almost blurred out because of the outrage. It was the outrage against the select few who, unfairly and almost unforgivably, owned enough resources and possessed enough expertise to constantly fool and manipulate the many. Have these psychopaths ever befriended a Pokemon?

<<You, Ms. McMaster, will be generously rewarded for your cooperation.>>

Clifford’s last sentence was still echoing in Anais’ head long after the recording ended. It was the essence of Clifford’s corporatist empire: agree with us and you will be rewarded, contradict us, or try to fight against us, and you will be crushed.

“Ash, where do you have this recording from?”

“Someone emailed it to me. It came from an anonymous source. After some investigations I found out who these Clifford and McMaster individuals are. I really want to go against them!”

“That’ll be hard… I worked for HC once and know their ways…” Anais answered tiredly. Becoming angry over that conversation drained her.

“But what is HC anyway? You mentioned it when I bumped into you on the floor.”

“HC… Well, HC is one of Clifford’s corporations. After finishing my studies I was recruited to work for them. Brainwashed by their marketing and severely affected by the stupidity of youth, I accepted. What followed was hell. After a few years I couldn’t take it anymore and quit. So far, so good. But… I also started this blog about corporatist abuse, maybe you saw the link on my Instagram page. And ever since then, I couldn’t find a job anymore. No one would hire me. I am blacklisted. Not to mention I always get threats from them that I should delete my blog… As if _that_ will ever happen…”

“I am sorry, I didn’t know. And here I come, causing more trouble for you.”

“Don’t worry… You are nothing compared to what I’ve just heard.”

Ash fidgeted on the bench in the short silence that followed.

“I uploaded the recording online, on many websites. Only to find out it was gone the next day. And on the few places where it still remained online, it got no views or reactions from anyone!”

Anais sadly shook her head and looked at Ash a bit amused.

“What were you expecting? That everyone would just rush to Ryme City, riot against Clifford, throw him in jail and celebrate justice?”

“Ah… I thought that maybe…”

But Anais cut him off and her serious tone tempered his zeal.

“It doesn’t work like that. The internet from the whole country is controlled by a handful of corporations. And one of them belongs to Clifford. I happened to work in that exact one,” she smirked. “They control the information everyone spreads online. They can filter it out, delete it, keep it online, but make it invisible for search engines or from users. You simply can’t make this recording public, under these circumstances.”

Ash looked quite a bit shocked, as if Anais hit him in the head with something.

“Well then… What is to be done? We can’t just let them go on with their plan!”

“If we want to bring this to the public, we must do it by eschewing the traditional channels.”

But she had absolutely no clue as to how they could do this. Ash seemed lost in his own world again, like he was after the mourning round from earlier that day. But he had an idea.

“I have an idea…”

“Let’s hear it!”

“If we must shun the traditional channels, the only thing left to do is to reveal this in front of everyone, while everyone else is also watching!”

Anais was not quite following him.

“The best place to do it is at a Pokemon League Conference. We just take advantage of the cameras broadcasting us live. We get tens of thousands of people from the stands witnessing our message, plus the millions seeing us on t.v. “

Anais was pleased with his solution, which kind of took her by surprise.

“This is not a bad idea. So, you just have to go there, somehow steal the spotlight and play the recording live. This doesn’t guarantee success, but it is better than what you have done until now, anyway.”

“It will not be me!”

“Who else then?”

“You.”

Anais needed a few seconds to process the information, and then uttered:

“Ash… Are you out of your mind?! How can I possibly get there and have access to the arena? I am not a Pokemon trainer!”

“Arrow chose you…”

“I am happy for him, good choice! But aren’t _you_ the Pokemon trainer here?!”

“Listen to me for a moment, please!”

Anais had to give in, because the young man seemed again on the edge of a nervous breakdown.

“I am not a Pokemon trainer any more. I told you. After Pikachu left, I was no good. I let all my Pokemon go and quit training. I can’t possibly gain the badges needed to enter the next League Conference, which will be in Unova. I have no Pokemon to challenge the gym leaders with and no time to catch new Pokemon. On the other hand, Arrow only listens to you now. So you and Arrow must go and earn the gym badges needed to enter the Unova League!”

When he realized his hands were seizing Anais’ shoulders, he jumped to his feet, almost stumbling.

“But Ash… I am no Pokemon trainer…”

“Arrow is really good,” Ash said, and, for the first time since Anais met him, he had the attitude of someone who knew what he was saying, someone whose experience and dedication couldn’t be put to doubt. “He already trusts you. All that is left is that you trust him, too. And always remember: he values your trust in him more than you worrying for him!”

To her surprise, Anais felt slightly pumped up by Ash’s words. Maybe their plan wasn’t the best, but it was the only one they had. And anything was worth trying. She forced herself to become more reasonable.

“Ok…” she answered. “But listen, Arrow has this handicap, which I am sure you noticed…”

“Oh _please_, I said I regret everything!”

“I just wanted to make it clear that I won’t accept him getting injured, or even worse, mutilated, ever again. Arrow was already put to use for _someone else’s_ interests. If things get out of hand, I will step in and stop the battle and we will need to find other ways of disclosing everything… _even_ with the risk of disclosing nothing at all.”

Ash was still standing beside the bench, head in his hands.

“Of course. Arrow must never hurt again. What happened then… I mean… It is all my fault, but I swear something was not right with that Lugia…”

“Could be, who knows what issues Pokemon involved in illegal battles have…”

“No,” Ash affirmed in a determined manner. “What happened at that particular battle was totally wrong… Before entering the arena, the trainer gave Lugia something to inhale. It was a sort of gas, it looked purplish…”

Anais’ eyes widened. It was her turn to jump to her feet.

“Do you know something about the gas? Did the trainer tell you anything? How did the gas affect Lugia?” Anais blurted impatiently.

“Well… After the guy made his Lugia inhale the gas, I tried to stop the battle. I told him that doping is illegal. But we were at an illegal battle anyway, hilarious of me to object. Right after inhaling the gas, Lugia got out of control, it seemed to have lost reason. It went berserk…”

“Ash! Do you think you can get me a sample of the purple gas?”

When she realized she was seizing his blouse and, most probably, staring at him with the eyes of a Pokemon after having inhaled the “R”, she quickly took one step back.

“Are you ok?” Ash asked.

“Please just answer!”

“Ok, ok… it will be a bit difficult now that I don’t have any Pokemon to challenge the guy with and have him give me a sample of that thing if I win… But there is this other thing I am good at. Do you have any sportsbooks in Ryme City?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t know if there is a canon place where the action in Pokemon (both the anime and the movie “Pokemon Detective Pikachu”) happens. I searched online, but found no canon location. So, I am just using the headcanon that everything takes place in the same country, whichever that is. It is a large country, so it would be normal for Ash, who was traveling during the events from “Pokemon Detective Pikachu”, not to have heard about the “R” gas incident. This explains why Ash has no idea about “R” and why Anais is not surprised that he doesn’t know.
> 
> There is also a second version I am considering: that the regions are countries of their own, just like the countries we have on Earth. I like both versions of the Pokemon world and am not sure which one to stick by!


	9. Life’s a Battle

So this was it. Anais was finally going against gym leaders from across the Unova region to try to get the eight badges necessary for being accepted at the Unova Pokemon League Conference. It hadn’t been hard to leave Ryme City, not having much to lose.

Ash and Anais’ plan was insane. The chances of actually obtaining the eight badges were small, but what led to the pursuit of this plan was not only Anais’ hate for Clifford and all that he represented, but also the realization that she couldn’t do anything bad! She wasn’t a Pokemon trainer, so no mistake in battle could actually be considered a failure.

The sum of money she had managed to hoard up before her blacklisting made her move from Ryme City to the Unova region possible. And thanks to her lack of claims for the accommodation, it seemed she wouldn’t run out of money soon. All she needed was a motel room with a balcony, the latter more for Arrow’s wellbeing than for her own pleasure. Since Unova was relatively large, Anais and Arrow would have to change motels at times, a nomadic life style with which Anais wasn’t used to. But this didn’t matter.

Anais wasn’t sure Arrow understood the whole plan. She had explained it to him, making sure she insisted upon the fact that gaining badges and being accepted in the Unova League was for other purposes than winning the Unova League Cup, winning battles or having fun. Ever since Anais had let Arrow know that they would be traveling across Unova to gain badges, Arrow had been jumping for joy like never before. This made Anais doubt the fact that Arrow was aware of their purpose.

Anais was no naïve Pokemon lover, even if she had never owned a Pokemon before, let alone be a trainer. She could tell Arrow was eager to get in a ring, run in the Unova Stadium or in any Gym arena, discharge his energy and show what he was capable of. But, even with the risk of disappointing Arrow, Anais would never let anything get out of hand.

Arrow had no clue that this adventure was Ash’s idea. Hiding this information from Arrow made Anais feel bad. But if Arrow knew the truth, would he want to help gain the badges?

Not wanting to risk the mission, Anais decided not to let Arrow know anything about Ash’s involvement. Wasn’t this just as bad as using Pokemon’ powers for one’s own financial interests, or carrying a Thunderstone in your bag for years without letting your Pokemon know about it? Anais hoped not.

For their first attempt at earning a Gym badge, Anais, with Arrow on her shoulder, was heading towards the Mistralton City Gym, aiming for the Jet Badge.

Since the Unova region was close to Ryme City, it was only logical for the two to share architectural and urban landscape styles. Just like in Ryme City, a great deal of the architecture in Mistralton City consisted of glass buildings with designs that defied the laws of physics. At night the flying vehicles on the aerial highways created light trails between the buildings situated in the busy center of Mistralton City.

But to Anais’ pleasant surprise, Mistralton City had more space dedicated to parks and patches of nature. Through such a place she was walking now.

To get to the Mistralton City Gym, you had to walk through a park and across the long bridge uniting a shore of the lake in the middle of the park and the island harboring the Mistralton City Gym.

The Gym was no more than a rectangular area covered by grass and enclosed in thick stone walls about ten meters high. Reaching the edifice, Anais stopped in front of a massive door made of a material imitating rock. There was no electric bell so she knocked on the door, expecting pain in her knuckles. Surprisingly, the material felt almost soft and transmitted the sound well.

A teenage boy opened the door and looked at Anais in abeyance. Since he wasn’t willing to start a conversation, Anais asked:

“Is this the Mistralton City Gym?” and quickly realized she could have opted for a more intelligent conversation starter.

“Yes…?” the teenage boy answered, apparently unwilling to step aside from the doorway. “And you are here for…?”

Anais hadn’t even started her journey well and strangers were already getting on her nerves.

“Promoting banking and insurance services, as well as recommending credit lines which might benefit your business.”

“Pikaaa?!”

The boy seemed to lack sense of humor, or knowledge, or both, and Anais managed to confuse her own Pokemon, so she went for the direct approach.

“Listen, I am here to challenge the Gym Leader to a battle. I really need the Jet Badge, so if you please let me in, I will get on with my business as soon as possible.”

The teenager looked at her and Arrow incredulously, but stepped aside. Anais entered a long corridor, expanding towards her left and right in equal lengths. She was probably inside the stone walls surrounding the rectangular Gym. Near the door there was a small desk and the boy led Anais towards it. It seemed that even Gym battles required paper work.

After asking Anais the usual questions that a public servant would ask a person who came to a public institution to get personal issues solved and writing down the answers, the teenager, who was probably the Gym Leader’s assistant, switched to more to-the-point questions.

“Which Pokemon are you using?”

“Just Pikachu.”

The boy starred at Anais, his glare moving from her to Arrow and backwards for a few times.

“Are you sure…?” he asked hesitatingly. “This won’t be easy.”

“Yes, I am positive.”

“Miss, you sure have noticed that your Pikachu has a handicap, aren’t you reconsidering your choice? It is for the Pokemon’s own good. Erm…” the boy was getting uneasy under Arrow’s glare, starting to regret having mentioned the handicap. “Hey, you are really cute, you know that…?” the boy addressed Arrow and extended a hand to pet him.

But Arrow ducked closer to Anais, avoiding the teenager’s touch.

“Pika!”

“Sorry, sorry!” Anais addressed the boy. “He doesn’t like being touched by strangers, he gets aggressive when people do this.”

“Ok…” the teenager replied. “One more thing… Your Pikachu looks oddly familiar. I can’t get over the fact that I have seen him somewhere before.”

The boy clearly had Arrow’s “most wanted” posters spread by Ash throughout the country in mind and Anais wondered whether Ash forgot to take them off, now that he knew where Arrow was. But that didn’t matter anymore, the boy was free to call the Police and they would sort out that she was no Pokemon kidnapper.

“Maybe you stumbled upon my Instagram page, most probably that is where you saw him. Can we start now? Who am I battling with?”

The boy pointed to a door behind her and right in front of the small desk he was seated at. The door was well camouflaged in the stone wall, probably made of the same material as the entrance to this rectangular tunnel fencing the arena within.

“Thanks,” Anais smiled to him, opened the door shown to her, entered the arena and prayed that Arceus helped her seem tougher than she actually was.

Anais found herself in a rectangular arena the size of a school yard. The size of the arena would pose a significand problem to her plan, but she had studied the legislation regarding Gym battles and already had a solution in mind.

“Hello there!” a male voice interrupted her thoughts.

She turned around to face a man, solid in appearance and dressed in sportswear. His muscular arms were covered with tattoos and expensive looking sun glasses rested on his spiky metallic blonde hair. He seemed the type who enjoyed showing off and whistling at women in the street.

“Hi,” Anais answered.

“I hope you are not challenging me with that Pikachu,” he said ironically, “because it might end up badly for him.”

“Listen, I just want to battle you and be over with this.” Anais tried to sound calm and calculated. She could feel Arrow getting tense after hearing they guy’s comment and she scratched his back to calm him down.

But if Ash was right, this Gym wasn’t going to be much of a problem.

“And please don’t make any more thoughtless remarks about my Pokemon, he has feelings, you know.”

“Speaking of your Pokemon…” the trainer continued, “I think I saw him before somewhere!”

“Must be Instagram.”

“Skyton,” the man grinned at her with the confidence of one used to winning, and outstretched his arm.

“Anais,” she replied, shook his hand and held his gaze.

Skyton started to walk to his post in the middle of one of the two lengths of the arena. At this arena, each trainer normally stood at their own post in the middle of each length of the rectangular area, directly facing the other trainer and at the same time having a clear view of the battling ring.

To Skyton’s surprise, instead of heading to her own post, Anais followed him to his post.

“Hey, normally the other trainer stays at their own post, right in front of mine and behind you…”

But Anais answered in the typical tone used by public servants in missions of verifying that the controlled institution, or, in this case, Gym, was in accordance with the laws and regulations of a specific region:

“I want to study how things are. I am planning to open my own Gym. And in the Unova region legislation regarding Gym battles, there is not a single mention of where trainers must stay.”

Skyton was beginning to feel nervous and she only hoped that her formal clothes helped at least as much as her legal knowledge did.

“Ok…Suit yourself,” Skyton answered.

At his post, Skyton took a Pokeball out of his pocket, threw it in the air with expert precision and yelled:

“Tropius, I choose you!”

Tropius materialized from white light before Skyton ended his call.

Tropius looked majestic and Anais was again starting to feel as if she was losing control of the situation, since Tropius was a Pokemon she had never heard of before. It walked on all fours like an Arcanine, but its whole body looked as if it were made entirely out of bark. Not to mention leaves grew straight from the skin under its long neck, falling on its chest like a collar.

Ash had said this was a Gym which hosted Flying types. But Tropius looked more like a Grass type to her. Could it be…

“Yes, Dual type!” Skyton interrupted her thoughts with his usual grin. “You didn’t expect this, did you?”

“Arrow, go!” she addressed Arrow, who jumped from her shoulder straight in front of Tropius with an agility that never ceased to amaze her. How could he jump for such a long distance without making her shoulder blue for momentum?

“Tropius is both a Flying _and_ a Grass type. Grass types have an advantage over Electric types. Just how do you think you can beat this with a Pikachu which, on top of it all, lacks a paw and an ear?!”

Skyton really seemed to want to bring her to her senses more than show off this time. But the plan had to be fulfilled, for all Pokemon’ sake.

“You’re so cocky one would say _you_ are doing all the work!”

Skyton was taken aback by her realistic remark and continued arguing with her instead of giving his Tropius a decent instruction:

“As if this isn’t _your_ case as well…”

Arrow wasn’t doing anything either, having been trained not to take action on his own during an official battle.

“Actually…” Anais said in a low tone, “It isn’t!”

Before Skyton or any of the two Pokemon, who were probably beginning to get bored, knew it, Anais dashed upon Skyton, pitching him down.

“What the…” Skyton uttered, but Anais slapped him in the face.

Taking advantage of both Pokemon’ astonishment, since neither of them had witnessed such a scene in their lives, and hoping Arrow was quick to snap out of it, Anais yelled at him:

“Arrow, Thunderbolt! On Tropius, not anyone else!”

Arrow’s quick thinking didn’t let Anais down and he performed a powerful Thunderbolt on Tropius.

Next thing everyone knew Tropius was laying in the grass, unable to battle, Arrow was looking around, not sure what exactly was going on and Anais finally let go of Skyton, who got up dizzily and stared at both Pokemon.

He then clumsily addressed Anais:

“Well… what can I say… Please go to whichever institution had sent you here and tell them that this Gym functions conformably to all rules in Unova, whichever those are…”

So the clothes and law-speech did the trick! But she still had to hide her joy and show a calculated demeanor.

“I would like to have the Jet Badge, please.”

Skyton led her out of the arena and to the small desk where she had been interrogated by the teenager. He rummaged in a drawer and produced a small badge which easily fitted in her palm. It was feather shaped and consisted of a light blue crystal fixed in glistening metal.

Looking at Skyton, she could tell that all he wanted in that moment was that she, together with the Pikachu again standing on her shoulder, left his Gym as soon as possible. She was beginning to actually like this Skyton person.

“Thank you,” she said before leaving. “I am sorry to have caused you any inconvenience.”

“No problem at all, Miss. Do you know the way out of the park?” Skyton asked stiffly.

After a few minutes, Anais was walking on the bridge which had led her to the Gym. Arrow still stood on her shoulder, but his attitude was different than that from before the so-called battle. He seemed confused, like someone who woke up from sleep only to find out they were in a different place than when they had gone to bed. Anais could tell why. But she just didn’t want to say it out loud.

* * *

Next stop was Nacrene City. According to Ash, and if she and Arrow sticked to “Plan B”, Ash and Anais’ way of designating the art of winning without battling, the Nacrene Gym wouldn’t be much of an obstacle.

Arrow and Anais would go against N, the Gym leader of the Nacrene Gym, in order to obtain the Basic Badge, their second badge out of the eight needed in order to have access to the Unova League Conference.

Situated on the outskirts of Nacrene City and about a mile inside the Pinwheel Forest bordering the city, the Nacrene Gym had been difficult to find.

There was no road that led to the gym through the forest and the GPS was unable to locate the edifice. Luckily for both of them, Arrow, who had been there before, remembered the way.

After some wandering in the forest, the duo arrived in front of a rectangular building. The building was about three stories high and consisted mostly of green frosted glass. On its flat roof trees and bushes grew, some creepers’ branches hanging down the walls.

The entrance was hidden behind a couple of taller bushes. Whoever this N person was, his intentions of hiding something were clear to her.

An individual who looked like a punk and displayed a bored expression opened the door. He was all dressed in leather and a few piercings embellished his face. Anais was already missing the kid from before.

“Yeah,” the guy said.

“We want to challenge N,” Anais said, hoping that this guy wasn’t N and that he was just some sort of errand.

“You don’t look like a Pokemon trainer,” the punk said in a drawling voice.

“You don’t look like someone making a living out of legal affairs.”

Anais’ answer pumped some blood into the punk’s bored and content attitude. He seemed to suddenly wake up to a jet of cold water in the face and to actually use his brain when talking:

“Listen, I don’t think you understand. Pokemon trainers _do_ know the risks of a battle, and if you are not a trainer, your Pokemon might get injured.” and he side glanced for a second at the Pikachu on her shoulder.

“We are fully aware of the risks,” Anais answered, trying to hide her impatience.

“What Pokemon are you using?”

“Pikachu,” she gently patted Arrow on the back, anticipating the punk’s next phrase and taking him by surprise with her psychic abilities:

“Yes, we are fully aware that he has a small issue, well, actually two small issues, but that will not prevent us from gaining the Basic badge. Yes, you’ve probably seen him before, most likely on my Instagram page. I would appreciate it if you now let me inside so I can finish what I haven’t even had the chance to start yet…”

Anais didn’t have the chance to rejoice at the punk’s baffled expression, because their dialogue was interrupted by a third person.

“Hey, what is going on?”

A tall man looking to be in his thirties appeared behind the punk. From what Anais could tell in the low light, the man had a friendly attitude, unlike the punk.

“N, this person wants to challenge you only with a handicapped Pikachu and I was explaining to her that this is not right…” but N laid his arm on the punk’s shoulder, ending his rant.

“Then let her,” N answered the punk and smiled to her.

He really seemed to be a nice person.

“Come on in. Please follow me.”

“Thank you very much!” Anais answered relieved and even grateful.

She followed N through a couple of corridors and climbed up and down some stairs, until they reached a door. And the banner above the door gave Anais chills. It displayed a clear message, in large black letters on a white background:

**<<Pokemon trainers are not allowed to get involved in fights against each other.**

**Pokemon trainers are required to stay within the perimeter of their own stand.>>**

Apparently the communication between Gyms worked seamlessly and Anais didn’t know if she should feel content or worried.

N waited for a few seconds for the message to take effect, then addressed her with the serene smile which Anais was starting to get used to:

“Are you ready to begin?”

“Ready when you are,” she smiled back at him and wondered why on Earth she said that.

What were these battles doing to her? She wasn’t the type to get so informal so soon with total strangers.

Then she entered the hall. It was indeed a hall, a large rectangular space with a concrete floor. A straight white line perpendicular to the middle of both lengths divided the hall in two equal areas and was embellished on its center with the white outline of a circle – the scheme of a Pokeball. It was the same design that could be seen on the floors of almost all Gyms and battle arenas, but its simplicity never failed to add an element of tension in the air.

Without saying a word to each other, N and Anais each headed for their own post, opposite to each other and directly facing each other. _Arceus, please help me one more time!_, Anais prayed.

N pulled out a Pokeball from a pocked and threw it in the air, while chanting:

“Eevee, I choose you!”

The Pokeball opened a few meters above the ground and a white ray of light gushed out of it and materialized into a beautiful being, about the size of a Pikachu, standing on all fours, large dark eyes darting towards Arrow. Eevee’s brown fur seemed soft. Its long ears were similar to Arrow’s… if only Arrow’s were complete. Anais had to fight the urge to run to Eevee and give it a hug, just so that she could feel that silky fur on her face, but she got a grip on herself:

“Arrow, I choose you!”

Arrow jumped off her shoulder, again with a momentum that should have normally smashed Anais’ bones, but only felt like a breeze, and landed about five meters in front of Eevee.

“Eevee, use Quick Attack!”

And the moment Eevee turned into a light blur, aiming high-speed for Arrow, Anais yelled:

“Arrow, dodge!”

A split second before Eevee hit Arrow, it was Arrow’s turn to change into a golden blur in order to get out of Eevee’s way. Before Eevee stopped its dash, Anais shouted to Arrow:

“Arrow, use Hyper Beam!” to which N intervened:

“Hey, I don’t mean to interfere, but a Pikachu can’t use Hyper Beam, only a Raichu can…” but Anais interrupted him.

“Yes, he can! Arrow, catch!” and Anais threw a small pocket lamp at Arrow. If it hadn’t been for Arrow’s long practiced reflexes, the pocket lamp would have missed its target, as Anais was a bad thrower.

In a short burst of Quick Attack, Arrow caught the pocket lamp and switched it on right in front of Eevee, temporarily blinding the Normal type with the light rays.

“Hey, what the fuck?!” N protested.

“Arrow, use Thunderbolt and make it strong!” Anais shouted to Arrow.

Arrow quickly obeyed and next thing both opponents saw were Arrow and Eevee engulfed in a ball of electricity, only for the globe to disintegrate, revealing a fainted Eevee and a confused Pikachu.

After a few seconds of starring in astonishment at the two Pokemon, N approached his Eevee. He stroked Eevee on its forehead and called it back in its Pokeball. Then, he turned to Anais cautiously.

“You know… You are not quite allowed to do that…”

“Please Mr. N, I studied the Gym battle rules and what I just did is not prohibited. Please study the rules as well and note I am not lying.”

“But that’s not the point!” N objected.

“What _is_ the point?” and then she gathered the inner strength to do what she never did before in her life: blackmailing.

“I need the Badge and you… You don’t need the Police to find out that this Gym hosts illegal Pokemon battles outside of the opening hours.”

N turned pale. He didn’t know where this girl obtained this information from, but it was true. If the Police found out about his secret affair, they would close his Gym, cancel his trainer license and confiscate his beloved Pokemon. And what did he have to lose if he gave her the Badge, anyway? He could take a hit at his reputation for sending an unexperienced trainer to the Unova League Conference, but he couldn’t take losing his freedom.

N rummaged for a few seconds in one of his pockets and then handed Anais the Basic badge: the small item could have easily been confused with a piece of computer RAM, if computer RAM were made of gold and amber.

She admired the badge for a moment and then put it in her own pocket.

“Hey…” N again addressed her in his friendly familiar manner. “Your Pokemon is not happy. Just know that.”

Anais approached Arrow, who was sitting on the ground, dejected, like a child whose parents took the favorite toy away without explanation. She squatted in front of him.

“We are one step closer to entering the Unova League and you know what is at stake. Let’s get out and have some fun, ok?”

Arrow’s mien heartened up a bit at the prospect of frolicking outdoors somewhere and Anais took him in her arms. She was not Ash and didn’t believe Arrow expected her to either. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t bond with the Pokemon and give him a happy life.

“You two are a bit weird, you know?” N addressed both Anais and Arrow.

“Thanks, we know,” Anais smiled.

* * *

Ash was walking in and out of one of the shopping malls of Ryme City, not knowing how to get to the sportsbook inside.

The mall was an imposing seven stories edifice, spread on an area about the size of a Pokemon battle arena. It consisted of pastel orange and beige toned marble and each floor was embellished with large windows opening to beautiful panoramas of Ryme City.

Seen from outside, the architectural pattern was interrupted on a round four stories high area by a semi-sphere made of glass, ranging from the fourth to the seventh floor. The glistening semi-sphere was protruding seven meters at its maximum circumference beyond the mall wall. That was where the largest sportsbook from Ryme City could be found, but from inside the mall no door led to it.

After an hour of entering the mall, aimlessly wandering inside and getting out again, Ash approached a Litten, which idly laid in the fine grass in front of the mall.

“Hey there.”

“Litt?”

“I was wondering if you could help me with one thing,” Ash said and pulled out a small Pokemon food can of the finest type. The Litten’s yellow eyes sparkled even brighter than usual, revealing the fact that the Pokemon hadn’t tasted such fine food in a long time or maybe even never at all.

“How can I get to the sportsbook?”

The Litten jumped on all fours and sprinted away, stopping every few meters to see if Ash was still following behind. Ash followed the Litten along the front side of the mall, turned around a corner and then turned once more, running along the back side of the building. The Litten stopped in front of an elevator door.

“Oh, so this was it, huh! I never thought you get to the sportsbook through the back of the building! Well, thanks a lot, friend!” Ash said, laid the can on the ground and watched Litten grip it in its small muzzle and flee.

Ash called the elevator and went upstairs to the fourth floor.

The elevator doors opened and Ash stepped inside a lobby. The lobby looked like a restaurant and stayed true to the appearance of the mall: hanging pendant lamps decorated pastel marble walls and lit the room up discretely. Four rows of round wooden tables offered enough room for groups of two or three people to gather round and have a smoke. This sportsbook looked very different from what he was used to.

Ash didn’t have time to grasp the whole scenery because a young man in a black suit approached him:

“Good evening Sir. How may I help you?”

“Hi! I am here to lay a wager in the Sinnoh League.”

Ash was never the type to care about looks, be it his own or others’, but seeing all these people dressed in elegant clothes made him feel out of place. His worn out shirt and drab jeans turned him into an alien in a room full of humans.

“Of course, please follow me,” the young sportsbook employee said in a polite tone. But before turning to lead Ash to his betting place, he whispered:

“If I may ask a question, and please excuse my curiosity, as I am sure you are here with important business… How can I put it,” the youth blushed, “Am I wrong in assuming you are Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town?”

“No, you are right, that is me,” Ash smiled in an attempt to make his interlocutor feel more at ease.

“Haha, I knew it! Wait ‘till the boys hear it! I am a big fan of yours, I have watched all your matches, too bad we don’t have a League in Ryme City, it would be an honor to have you battle in our city. Please, can I have your autograph?” the youth asked hopefully and produced a small notebook and pen from one of his pockets.

“Thank you so much,” Ash answered while signing.

“You know, that match from the Kanto League finals from two years ago will remain in history. The longest match in the history of battling, two hours and a half! Pikachu was amazing, I wonder how he resisted for so long! Too bad I don’t have his autograph as well, ha ha!” the young man said, took back his notebook and looked at Ash’s signature as if it were painted in gold.

“Next time you come, please bring Pikachu with you!”

“Oh,” Ash was beginning to wish this conversation ended. “He is taking a break from everything in a much better place.”

“Oh no…” the young man replied, his mien saddening, “I am sorry to hear that…”

“No no, that’s not what I meant,” Ash stuttered, daring to take half a step towards the entrance of the large saloon, which Ash believed to be the sportsbook. “He is alive and well, just not battling any more. Could you please show me the way to the betting area?” Ash asked hopefully.

“But of course, I am so sorry to have wasted your precious time, please follow me,” the employee talked again in his professional guests-welcoming tone.

The employee led Ash out of the lobby and into the large circular betting saloon and showed him to an ATM-looking machine stuck to the circular hall wall. Ash thanked the youth again and spent a few minutes taking the new surroundings in before setting about his scope.

So this was what the glass semi-sphere looked like from inside. Somehow, Ash had been expecting more and was now a bit disappointed. The circular walls were covered in machines similar to that which he stood in front of. One person was assigned to each ATM-looking machine, and each machine along with the person in front of it was separated from the two adjacent machines by panels. The panels weren’t large, but just enough to keep the persons to the left and right from glancing at one’s screen. A spiral staircase in the middle of the round room led to the upper floor.

No one was talking, the only sounds were the clicking on the keyboards of the betting machines and the gentle tapping of the touch screens.

No bickering, no joking, no fighting. Were all those people there only to make money?

Ash focused on his purpose. Anais had done her part amazingly so far considering she was no Pokemon trainer and he was beginning to understand why Pikachu chose her. Now it was time for him to do _his_ part.

The Sinnoh League was ongoing. The battling pairs which would battle in the Eighth-finals had been announced the day before and were now displayed in the already familiar way on the desktop of the machine. The names of the two trainers from each battling pair reigned on top of each column. The column was populated with the six Pokemon belonging to each of the two trainers, the names of the Pokemon belonging to the same trainer written in the same color. All Ash had to do was think about a hypothetical Pokemon battling pair and guess the possible winner of the hypothetical pair. The ever -present risk loomed like a disheartening whisper: the risk that the hypothetical pair he put his hopes in never materialized, just because the trainers wouldn’t choose those exact Pokemon.

But what was that? Ash noticed three soft keys on the screen of the machine: Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Final. Ash tapped the key that wrote Quarterfinals. Instead of the familiar table filled with the already established participants, the screen now displayed four empty columns, for the gambler _themselves_ to fill.

Unlike all sportsbooks he had seen so far, where he laid his wagers on Pokemon from already known battling pairs, in the Ryme City sportsbook he also had the option of betting on a Pokemon from a hypothetical trainer pair, which could hypothetically materialize in one of the future rounds! Here was the _real _money!

Ash went for the Semifinals. Since the Semifinals weren’t there yet, he didn’t have the semi-finalists, let alone the possible Pokemon battling pairs with the respective winner.

The Semifinals of the Sinnoh League would take place two weeks before the beginning of the Unova League; enough time to buy a sample of the “R” from Lugia’s trainer.

Betting big was the same as battling in the Finals. His heart raced, his vision narrowed and his mind generated and eliminated conjectures faster than a Quick Attack. If palms sweated too much, he had his shirt at hand, habit frowned upon by some people.

* * *

_Interrupting the program with a new and, I dare say, terrifying information. Occurrences of a so far unknown disease affecting Pokemon have been reported throughout the country by Pokemon owners. _

_Pokemon owners from various regions describe the same symptoms affecting their beloved partners. It seems that the illness debuts with an apathic state, usually presumed to be caused by anemia. Since the symptoms do not immediately aggravate, the human partners most often only treat the indisposition of their beloved ones with light anti-anemic medicine._

_After a few days to a few weeks of slight lethargy, aggravating symptoms begin at a fast pace: abundant bleedings, high fever, delusional behavior, low blood tension, fainting. Until now, every single occurrence of this new and unknown malady ended with the Pokemon’s death._

_We strongly advise Pokemon owners not to panic, should they recognize any of the before mentioned symptoms affecting their friends and partners. In case of any doubt, please take your Pokemon to the closest Pokemon center, or, if transportation is impossible, please call Pokemon Emergency._

_The cause of the disease is unknown, but scientists from the largest research institutions in the country are currently investigating it and looking for a cure._

_I will keep you up to date and please keep an eye on your Pokemon!_

_Cynthia McMaster, CNM News Network._


	10. So Battle!

Anais, with Arrow on her shoulder, arrived in front of the Driftveil Gym, the only Gym in Driftveil City. Seen from outside, the edifice looked more like a factory than a Gym. But everyone knew that Clay, the Gym leader, owned many plants operating in the mining industry and this Gym also functioned as a mine.

Anais rang and a man opened the factory gate. He was dressed in a miner’s working suit and looked to be in his mid 40s. After seeing Anais, his eyes lit as if recognizing her, however he asked:

“Yes, how can I help you?”

There was something about the man that Anais liked, although she couldn’t tell exactly what. Maybe it was just because he seemed straight forward and to the point and his clothes looked like what a hard worker would wear.

“My name is Anais Mathews and I want to challenge you.”

“Ok then,” the man answered as if expecting her request. “Please follow me,” he continued and turned around. Clay didn’t mention anything about Arrow’s handicap or about how Arrow looked familiar. Anais found this as a relief.

She followed Clay through a dimly lit corridor, climbed down a staircase and entered an elevator. The elevator started descending without a sound, Clay smiled to her and Arrow clutched her blouse with his small claws a bit tighter.

After what seemed to be a one hundred meters descent, the elevator doors opened and all three passengers got out. The elevator dropped them in front of an underground arena, about fifty meters long and almost as wide. The battling arena was enclosed by a wire fence and lamp posts illuminated the field from behind the fence.

Clay was rummaging in one of his pockets for the keys to the gate in the fence, which granted Anais some time to notice the sign nailed to the gate. On the white plastic placard a message in black letters read:

**<<Pokemon trainers are not allowed to get involved in fights against each other.**

**Pokemon trainers are required to stay within the perimeter of their own stand.**

**Pokemon trainers aren’t allowed to throw objects to their Pokemon, which the latter can use against their opponent.**

**Pokemon trainers aren’t allowed to engage in any type of contact with the Gym leader’s Pokemon, be it physical contact or talking.**

**Pokemon trainers aren’t allowed to throw food in the arena.**

**Pokemon trainers aren’t allowed to give their Pokemon fake instructions only to baffle the Gym leader and their Pokemon.>>**

With each line she read, her blood tension decreased. After finishing reading, her legs felt weak and her mind started racing for additions to “Plan B” – winning without battling. Her thought process was interrupted by Clay’s tinkling of keys, as the Gym Leader was opening the door.

Clay addressed her blandly:

“Are you ready? We can wait a few minutes, if you like. I imagine the elevator descent wasn’t exactly what you were expecting.”

“No, it’s fine,” Anais smiled in what she hoped was a natural way. She still wasn’t sure whether Arrow could read any text, from her time with him she was only certain he could understand simple sentences. Strangely, Arrow relaxed on her shoulder and his grip on her shirt loosened up. Anais feared that this battle would be what Arrow wanted and what she dreaded.

At his post, Clay took a Pokeball out of one of his pockets, threw it in the air and chanted just before the Pokeball sent out its inhabitant:

“Golem, I choose you!”

The bright light bursting out of the Pokeball materialized in a massive strong looking Pokemon. Golem was about one meter and a half tall and his sturdy limbs covered in glabrous leather stemmed from a spherical trunk made of rock.

“Arrow, I choose you!” Anais said, hoping not to transmit her nervousness to Arrow. 

“Golem, Sand Attack!”

The whole field of vision turned into a brownish blur; it was the layer of fine, light sand covering the ground, thrown into chaotic whirlwinds.

Anais squinted her eyes in an attempt to see Arrow, but it didn’t help. She coughed to get the sand out of her nostrils and throat and yelled:

“Arrow, are you ok?”

But Arrow’s answer was covered by Clay’s powerful voice:

“Golem, Tackle Attack!”

The sound of a boulder rolling on the ground added to the whistling of the dust twirls.

“Pikaaaaa!” Arrow yelled piercingly.

His voice cut a notch in Anais’ heart. Her palms were wet and her face was burning. The fear of Arrow getting injured combined with the remorse of him getting injured _because of her_ and resulted in a struggle not to throw up.

“Arrow, use Thunderbolt!”

The dirty blur encompassing her field of vision glowed for a few seconds, but judging by the sounds, or lack of additional sounds, Golem was not affected.

“Miss Anais, did you not know that Ground types aren’t affected by electricity? Golem, Tackle Attack again!”

“Dodge it!”

But Arrow’s lament made it clear that she wasn’t fast enough with her commands. This seemed much easier on t.v. than in real life.

“Arrow, I am so sorry!”

“Golem, let’s put an end to this! Explosion, and make it strong!”

Anais could see Golem’s robust body and get a glimpse of the much smaller Arrow through the dust. Could this mean that the dust storm rarefied? After all, no Pokemon could hold an attack for a long time with the same intensity. A flare of white light formed where she assumed Golem’s head.

“Dodge whatever it is!” Anais shouted.

A white ray of light aimed at Arrow and the latter backed off. Unfortunately, he didn’t back off enough and the ray threw him high in the air. Anais watched panic-stricken as the yellow Electric type plunged at least ten meters high into the air. But a rush of blood to the head washed the panic away:

“Arrow, Thunderbolt, aim for the eyes!”

Arrow’s cheeks blazed and in the blink of an eye his whole body was engulfed in electricity. A long lightning bolt hit Golem’s head and paralyzed the Ground type.

“Golem, what the heck?!”

“Keep it at a high intensity!” Anais shouted to Arrow, not believing her eyes that the long electricity bolt hitting Golem’s head on one end was maintaining the hovering Arrow on the opposite end.

Golem hit the ground with a dull thud and Arrow touched the ground softly, using his lightning bolt as an elevator.

The referee didn’t even finish declaring Arrow and Anais’ victory and Arrow was already running high speed towards her, with a radiant smile on his face. The Electric type jumped in her arms with such a velocity that Anais had to take a few steps back so as not to fall.

“Pika! Pikachu! Pikaaa!” her friend told her, as if wanting to reassure her that everything was fine and at the same time reproaching her with not having trusted him from the beginning.

“I know, I know…”

So this was how it felt like to be a Pokemon trainer after a victory. She was starting to realize the trainers’ passion: this rush of adrenaline was so fulfilling it was almost addictive.

Arrow buried his face in her chest, his chunky body heating her up more than she already was. That small body hid muscles that could break ribs. She had the sensation that, underneath the soft yellow fur, something was pulsing and vibrating. How must it feel like to host so many volts inside you?

A moment after the extasy of her first victory, Clay approached her, with the Quake Badge in one hand.

“I believe this is yours,” he smiled.

“Thank you very much,” Anais replied, taking the Quake Badge. Oddly, it was shaped as a stylized lightning bolt and the golden margins encompassed a mosaic of silvery rock bits.

“You know… you are pretty good for a non-trainer ha ha! Telling your Pikachu to aim for the eyes was a smart move.”

“Thank you, I have no idea how I came up with that! Anyway, Arrow is way better than me…”

“Pikaaa…” Arrow protested amused.

Anais, with Arrow still in her arms, left the factory. She was struck by the realization that, until this battle, Arrow had never run into her arms like that. Of course, he had been in her possession for some time and didn’t protest when she took him in her arms or stroked him, not to mention he had made her shoulders into his favorite means of transportation. But to jump in her arms with such affection and velocity was… It was what Arrow used to do with Ash after a hard-earned victory in the League Conferences on t.v..

She looked at her friend. Ever since she had adopted him, Arrow had never been so happy. She hadn’t felt so good herself in a long while.

“Arrow, are you ok? Do you want to go to a Pokemon Center?”

“Pikaa!” Arrow shook his head, as if the battle with Golem had been way too easy.

“If you say so. How about getting something to eat?”

“Pi-ka!” and his dark brown eyes lit with even more sparkles than usual, which was how he normally reacted to food.

“Arrow, look… I had no idea that battling is so important to you. I am really new to everything. But I will try not to let you down. What we are doing is for an important cause, you know?”

“Piii,” Arrow comforted her.

* * *

Just a little more effort and they would be accepted in the Unova League Conference. This next battle would be a challenge, but Anais promised Arrow she would not let him down and a promise was a promise. The options were simple and few: either risk Arrow’s integrity in order to get to the League, or not take any risk and settle for the fact that no one would disclose anything about Clifford and he would go on with his business undisturbed, harming innocent and unsuspecting Pokemon in the process.

She was wondering what Ash was doing. The next day everyone would know the semi-finalists of the Sinnoh League and in a week Ash and Anais would know if Ash laid the right wager. She was hoping Ash’s instinct was right. As much as what he did often defied all logic, his gut feeling led him on the right track.

Anais and Arrow arrived in front of a building which had nothing special about it. It looked similar to a school building: two stories high, large windows, a flat roof. Only the message carved in the wall above the door gave away the fact that this was a Gym: “Psychic Types Gym – Show what your mind is capable of and earn the Mind Badge”.

After filling in some papers she was led by a young assistant to the Gym door. The familiar banner with Gym battle rules was nailed to the door, but there were no updates to it since the last battle. And there probably would be none from now on. She opened the door and entered.

The battle area had the familiar rectangle shape with the common scheme painted on the ground: the line stemming from a half of a length to the half of the opposite length with a circle outline in the middle.

“Hello,” said a young woman about her age.

“Hi,” Anais answered.

“I am Alicia Blackstone and I will be your battling opponent. Win this battle and you get the Mind Badge. Are you ready?”

The trainer seemed nice and energetic. Athletic, hair tied in a pony tail and dressed in a light blue sports outfit, she looked in shape.

“Anais Mathews, nice to meet you. Yes, I am ready.”

Arrow jumped from Anais’ shoulder straight in front of her post, eyes focused on the still empty place in front of Alicia’s post and cheeks letting out sparks.

“Ok, then…” Alicia said and threw a Pokeball in the air. “Espeon, I choose you!”

The white light flaring out of the Pokeball materialized in a beautiful Pokemon. Espeon belonged to the Pokemon which Anais would have rather hugged than battled. Short purple fur covered its slender body. The head shape reminded Anais of Eevee, but Espeon’s jaws were sharper. Its dark eyes locked into Arrow’s but its large flagging ears tamed its aspect.

“Espeon, Quick Attack!”

Espeon turned into a purple lilac light trail and gushed out at Arrow.

“Arrow, dodge…” but Anais was too late with her instruction, as Espeon hit Arrow and the latter rolled a few meters on the ground before jumping on all threes, thus signaling Anais that he wasn’t affected.

“Arrow, Thunderbolt!”

“Espeon, Zap Canon!”

Arrow’s Thunderbolt collided with the dark sphere with green sparks inside let out from Espeon’s forehead, resulting in an aerial explosion in the middle of the Gym.

“Agaaaain!” Anais shouted before the explosion vanished, not giving Alicia time to command her Espeon.

“Piiika – CHUUUUUUUUU!!!”

Arrow’s Thunderbolt hit Espeon unexpectedly and it was the Psychic’s turn to roll on the floor.

“Agaaaain!”

“Use Psychic!” Alicia shouted before Arrow sent out his Thunderbolt for the third time, possibly damaging the purple Pokemon significantly.

Espeon’s dark eyes lightened. A soft light engulfed Arrow and his unfinished Thunderbolt vanished. Arrow was thrust into the ceiling and back into the ground.

“Arrow, are you ok?” Anais had to fight the urge of stepping in the arena, picking the almost fainted Arrow up and admitting defeat.

Arrow stumbled a bit, but managed to get up and glared at Espeon, his cheeks again letting out sparks.

“Great! Let’s try with Iron Tail this time!”

In the blink of an eye, Arrow’s tail turned from a lightning bolt covered in yellow fur into a lightning bolt shaped silver edge. He dived right into Espeon, but Alicia was again too fast:

“Espeon, use Psychic and don’t let go!”

Before hitting Espeon, Arrow was thrust into the ceiling and back into the floor. Showing signs that he was about to get up again, Espeon again threw Arrow into the ceiling and shoved him into the floor.

Anais’ hands were shaking. Her pulse compensated for the lack of energy in her legs and she asked, not sure she could hide her nervousness:

“Arrow, are you totally blocked when it does this?”

Before Arrow got up, Espeon thrust him into the ceiling for the fourth time. To everyone’s astonishment, Arrow wasn’t thrown back into the floor this time.

His three paws as well as his Iron Tail fastened to the edges of an isolation mineral wood board, the type of which covered the whole ceiling.

“Pikaaaaaa!” he yelled and it sounded as if he was making a huge effort.

The rectangle board Arrow had been, head-down, standing on detached, gushed out and hit Espeon straight in the head.

“Espeon, are you ok?” asked Alicia.

But Espeon didn’t have enough time to shake the board off his head and get up, as another identical one hit him in the head.

“Arrow, Thunderbolt!”

Arrow’s Thunderbolt deemed Espeon unable to continue, Alicia rushed in the arena and took the weak Espeon in her arms and Arrow let go of the ceiling, landed and ran in Anais’ arms like he did after the previous battle.

“Arrow, you are a genius! My little dumpling!... thank you so much!” Anais told her friend while he was still buried in her chest.

“Pika pikaaa!”

Anais held Arrow in her arms for a minute until Alicia joined her.

“Hey…I don’t know why you’re doing this, you are clearly not a trainer and that Pikachu isn’t yours - “

“He _is_ mine…” but Alicia raised a hand to shut Anais up.

“I honestly don’t care whom he belongs to. He listens to you and that is enough on my side.”

She handed Anais an amethyst badge the shape of a plant root in a thin silver frame. At a closer look the shape turned out to be a neuron.

“Thank you very much.”

“Don’t mention it. Do you want to go outside? There is a park near-by. My Espeon seems like he wants to go for a walk right now… And if he does his things in the Gym arena again, I will throw myself off the building!”

“Sure, no problem! Arrow once did his things in the middle of the room, but it was only to piss me off ha ha!”

“Aren’t they just awesome?”

Anais and Alicia accompanied by Espeon and Arrow left the Gym to go outside and both girls were looking affectionately at how the two Pokemon who had been battling half an hour ago were now playing in the grass.

* * *

Ash had been wandering through the Reteez Forest of the Johto Region for three days in a row. B, Lugia’s trainer - the Lugia who had mutilated Arrow a year and a half ago under the influence of the “R” gas – had only told Ash to find his shelter from within the Reteez Forest, come unaccompanied and bring the money.

Ash was used to living in the wilderness. Until then he had only traveled and camped accompanied by at least one Pokemon, Arrow having always been by his side. This kept dangers at bay – mostly wild Pokemon and thieves. Add to this that he almost always had at least one human companion, so the silly jokes and campfire stories were provided.

For the first time Ash was traveling alone, but this did not scare him, nor did it sadden him. He had one clear purpose – to find B and get the “R” – and he wouldn’t let anything get in the way. After three days of searching the Reteez Forest, he could find no sign of a forest shelter or secret entrance.

Time went by fast. In a week from now the Unova League Conference would start and he had to get his hands on a sample of the “R” until then.

He paused his walk to fill in his mental map of the part of the Reteez Forest he had already searched through. Thanks to many years of living outdoors, surrounded by Pokemon, nature and his friends, he was used to remembering all the places he’d been through, storing them in his mind, almost like creating a GPS landscape from scratch. He was sure he hadn’t visited the same tree twice. B’s shelter proved very hard to find. Ash could understand why, since B had always been involved in all sorts of illegal or questionable affairs. A shelter impossible to find was a must. But he really wished it wasn’t impossible to find at this point in time.

Ash turned around at the sound of something slithering through the grass, shrubs and fallen leaves. He let his glance rest upon the source of the subtle noise and it met the yellow eyes of an Ekans watching him in return.

“Hello, there!”

The Ekans did not move. It was not scared, but not friendly either. Ekans could move soundlessly, so did it let Ash hear it purposefully? Ash wanted to ask the Pokemon who it was working for, but decided against it as now wasn’t the time for silly jokes.

“I am kind of lost, you know. And I was wondering if you know someone, a human, who goes by the name of B? I also have some dried food in a can if you…”

But Ekans’ unexpected sliding interrupted Ash, who instinctively ran after the Pokemon.

“Alright!” Ash talked to the purple Pokemon while following it closely. “That’s what I was talking about!”

Ekans did not look back. If Ash could keep pace with it, then good, if not, the human was unlucky. But being in shape was never an issue for Ash. Long hours of training with his Pokemon, living under the sun and rain and dropping out of school did more for his physical shape than all the gyms would have done.

He even continued chatting with the silent Ekans.

“Hey, that can of dried food I was talking about… It is really good, not what you find in the forest. It tastes well, trust me! I mean, not that I would be eating Pokemon food or something haha – “

Ash’s feet stopped when Ekans froze. Only his reflexes kept him from hitting the ground with his face.

Between the young man fallen to the ground and Ekans laid a shrub. Nothing seemed special about the plant, but given Ekans’ intense stare, the bush clearly hid something. Ash got up and gently pulled some branches of the shrub up. To his surprise, the branches proved very easy to uproot. He continued until all the branches of the shrub laid around him and all that was left in its place was an empty patch of land the size of an Ekans, or Arbok.

He stepped on the patch. Then he jumped on it. Then the ground crumbled and he fell for about four meters.

Ash rolled on the ground of what seemed to be a stone underground cave, to soften the impact of the fall. The cave, or man-made room, he couldn’t tell, was dark. The lack of an echo gave away the fact that the room was small, maybe just the size of an average living room.

The only light source consisted of the faint rays of the evening sun protruding through the hole in the ceiling through which Ash came falling. The dim light also showed something else: this subterranean room was an Ekans’ nest. Along one wall, a handful of Ekans were slithering around, talking to each other, possibly taking care of some cubs. They didn’t pay much attention to Ash, who thought it was a good idea to move on with the plan. Or with the wish to find B, since he didn’t actually have a plan.

He left a can of Pokemon food on the ground, feeling sorry he didn’t bring more with him and started looking for an exit out of this pit. A tunnel entry was carved in stone on the wall opposite to where most of the Ekans were winded. He headed for the tunnel, leaving the Ekans’ nest behind. After a few meters the tunnel faded into complete darkness, but the path only led ahead, so there wasn’t much need of a light source anyway. This looked like a trap. But Ash had nothing to fear. He had the peace of mind of a person who knows they deserve a punishment.

“Ouch!”

He hit another wall. After some groping in the dark, the wall turned out to be a door. The door swung open and Ash was pulled inside by heavy, strong paws and thrown on the ground. The door closed again and Ash felt a massive being above him, its breath close to his face and some tips of fur even touching him. He was being examined, sniffed and glared at, but without paws or hands searching him – everything in complete darkness. It was not a good idea to move or utter a word.

After what seemed like a few minutes, a small electric torch was switched on and Ash heard B’s voice:

“Ok, Luxray, if you say so.”

Luxray hadn’t actually said anything, but maybe it had a different means of letting B know that Ash wasn’t hiding any weapons or inhabited Pokeballs. The Pokemon moved away from Ash and sat near B, like a guardian.

Ash got up and, thanks to B’s electric torch, could now get a glimpse of the room he was in with B and his Luxray. This was a small hole, probably man made. The ground was covered with piles of various objects, as much as the small space permitted. B was sitting on the dusty ground with the small electric torch to one side and his Luxray to the other.

“You came,” said B. “Please excuse the inconvenience, but I had to make sure you weren’t gonna bring in any unwanted things. And what a better way to do this than with my friend’s awesome x-ray vision?”

“No harm done,” Ash answered and fished a Pokeball with a lightning bolt seal on its red upper half from his pocket. B and Luxray did not move a muscle. It was nice to see B trusted his Luxray’s x-ray vision. Ash opened the Pokeball, which had always been uninhabited and probably always would, to reveal a bundle of cheques, put the open sphere on the ground in front of B and stepped back.

Without a word, B started counting the cheques. Not believing his eyes, he re-counted the sum and addressed Ash.

“Ash, this is double of what I asked you. You know how to count, right?”

“I know very well how to count, I didn’t let public school ruin my education.”

“And it didn’t ruin your sense of humor either, good. But let’s get serious. Why are you giving me the double of the damn sum of money? Are you aware how much money is in this Pokeball?”

“Yes, well…I need a small piece of information, besides a sample of the “R”.”

B grunted and rolled his eyes, but that didn’t stop Ash.

“It won’t cost you anything extra. The information I need is so small, that you could as well call it a hint… a glimpse…a …”

“A freakin metaphor, yeah…”

“A… Please tell me what this “R” is used for. Why are you testing it on your Pokemon in the illegal battles? Is it a dope substance? Or is it more than that? Are there more trainers testing it?”

B managed to stuff the cheques back in the Pokeball with the lightning bolt seal on it. He remained motionless for a couple of seconds, lost in calculations and scenarios. He seemed to have made a decision and fixed Ash with his gaze.

“I am not allowed to say any of this. I will not even answer all of your questions. This meeting never took place and our hiding place will disappear in the next 24 hours. A lavish life of rest and relaxation awaits me somewhere, who knows. Maybe in Alola? The “R” is a compound of a vaccine they are testing. To prevent a Pokemon illness or something. And you won’t get more from me than this.”

With this, B produced a glass test tube, put it on the ground, gave it a fillip until it rolled in front of Ash’s feet and Ash picked it up. The tube seemed to be made of glass, but it clearly consisted of a much more resistant material. The gas inside looked like a miniature nebula in purple tones.

“Hey, be careful with that. Can I ask why you need a sample of the damn thing? And why do you want to know what it’s used for?”

“I really can’t tell.”

“It doesn’t matter. Hey. You should re-consider going to Leagues, you know. You were the very best.”

“_Were,_” Ash answered with a bitter smile which B had never seen before. ”Have fun in Alola. It is an awesome place.”

They parted. Ash went back through the tunnel leading to the Ekans’ nest, from where he would, one way or another, reach the surface again.

* * *

_Ladies and gentlemen, I am sorry to interrupt the broadcast, but fresh news regarding the mysterious new illness affecting Pokemon just came from the Pokemon research facility from the Kanto Region._

_Scientists at the laboratories in Kanto Region discovered the virus causing the illness, as well as a possible cure. The cure is currently being tested on Pokemon in a controlled environment and, if proven effective, will be commercialized in dispensaries and drug stores._

_As always, I will keep you up to date and please don’t panic, because help is on the way!_

_Cynthia McMaster, CNM News Network_ _._


	11. In Truth Lies Power

“Round one of the Unova League Conference starts today and I can’t tell you how happy we are to welcome you all here, dear supporters, fans and ultras… Oh, wait sorry, we don’t like ultras very much here…” the commentator announced jovially, the tens of microphones spread throughout the arena stands transmitting his voice to everyone.

Anais was up next. Thanks to the eight badges Arrow and herself earned, she was allowed to enter the League. She would take advantage of the five-minutes speaking time each trainer was granted before or after a match, to spread her message and also show everyone present and everyone watching the Unova League Conference from home the proof that the “R” was not forgotten, on the contrary. The sample Ash had given her laid in her pocket.

After the disclosure, she would proceed with the battle for Arrow’s sake, since she knew how important battling was to him and she had promised him not to let him down. Of course they would both lose, but she would still seek to help Arrow do what he loved doing. Of course Arrow knew she wasn’t a trainer, but this didn’t matter to him, all he needed was a friend to understand him and whom he could bond with.

“One of the participants in the next battle is Barry Newanski from Twinleaf Town!” and Barry’s home town could barely be heard because of the trainer’s fans, who were yelling and waving placards with encouraging messages.

A young blonde man walked to his stand, waving to his supporters, all crowded in one part of the arena stands. His walk was confident, but Anais was unimpressed because she was here for whole other purposes than battle this guy – which she would do _anyway_.

“And Barry’s opponent is a new entry, dear viewers! Please give it up for Anais Matthews from Ryme City!” the commentator continued his presentations and then added in a secretive tone: “This girl has really unconventional ways of battling, or so I’ve been told!”

Anais walked to her stand and was surprised that some people actually cheered for her. She felt a pleasant warmth in her stomach and unconsciously smiled.

“Pika pika!” Arrow blurted enthusiastically from her shoulder, as if saying he told her battling wasn’t that bad.

Quickly and a bit clumsily, she waved to the public. Then she raised her right arm with the forefinger pointing upwards – the sign utilized by participants to signal that they want a microphone in order to take advantage of the five minutes granted to each, just in case they needed to share something with the public.

“Ladies and gentlemen, Anais is signaling us that she needs a microphone for five minutes! Since this is perfectly allowed, please, can a technician hand her a microphone?” the commentator’s voice reverberated in the arena.

“Hey, this isn’t fair! It is just one of her stratagems, everyone knows this already!” Barry protested, but due to the lack of a microphone, no one heard his objection.

“Listen, this is not what it looks like!” Anais shouted at him, trying to appease her opponent. She wanted to tell him more, but a technician handed her a microphone.

Without second thoughts she spoke into the microphone:

“Ladies and gentlemen, I assure you this is none of my stratagems! All Pokemon are in danger!”

She paused for a moment to take a transparent test tube out of her pocket. She raised the test tube in the air, allowing the cameras which were broadcasting the moment in all of the country to focus on the recipient filled with a miniature nebula in purple tones.

The public held their breath for a second, but after that the people began whispering, shouting, commenting, until the stands became so noisy that Anais wondered if the microphone could cover the confused murmur.

“This is the “R”! It put Clifford in jail six years and a half ago, unfortunately he got released sooner than expected! How I got my hands on this sample is a long story, but the “R” is not a forgotten affair, it is part of the vaccine against the new Pokemon illness every t.v. channel is talking about…”

A handful of people approached her from all directions. She was being circled by individuals who wanted to stop her, no doubt about that. The only thing left to do was to seize the moment:

“There is something else you need to know. Clifford and the mass media are behind all this, and the proof is in this recording, which I will play now!”

She wanted to pull out her cell phone, when her attention was caught by a different group of people. They blocked the way of those who wanted to stop her. It seemed she actually had some allies, and among them she recognized Clay and Alicia Blackstone. Pokeballs were produced and the people defending her engaged in battles with the ones wanting to cut her off.

She put her cell phone near the microphone to play the recording of the conversation between Clifford and Cynthia McMaster from CNM News Network, conversation which revealed the true purpose of the vaccine containing the dreaded “R”.

“You are as stupid as your boyfriend,” a calm and calculated voice interrupted her.

When did this guy appear in front of her? A second ago she was surrounded by her alleged helpers and her opponents battling each other, which earned her some time to finish the disclosure. And now this stranger nonchalantly walked towards her, a small ironic smile on his face.

“You will not stop us,” she answered him, clutching her cell phone and the “R” in her palm.

“Girl, you don’t know who you’re up against. Put the microphone down and give me the “R”.”

“Get it yourself!”

“Pikaaaa,” Arrow answered the guy as well, his voice no longer innocent and childish, but having the savage tinge it always got when Arrow was angry. Arrow’s small claws pushed a bit firmer into Anais’ jacket, his ears pricked and his fur flared up.

“Arrow, do you know him?”

“Pi-ka…” Arrow confirmed in the same tone.

“If you had any brains, you would have evolved him,” the annoying individual said undisturbed. “This would have solved his issues.”

“I don’t see any issues. Except for your mental ones.”

“Anyway, what do I care?” The stranger obviously didn’t like her answer.

He produced a Pokeball from his impeccable suit, threw it in the air and demanded:

“Raichu, I choose you!”

Before the stranger even finished his sentence, Arrow jumped from Anais’ shoulder in front of her in his familiar fighting position, tail and ears pointing upwards, body tense and cheeks letting out sparks.

This was not about Clifford any more, it was about Arrow. He was fully invested in this battle. What was important to humans wasn’t necessarily important to Pokemon, ever since she partnered with Arrow, Anais learned that much.

The light bursting out of the Pokeball materialized into Arrow’s evolved form and life-long rival – its sturdy body covered in orange fur with a whip-like tail stood stone-still, like a machine awaiting a command. By now Anais knew the story very well and now hoped to help Arrow get at least an even match and then… finish the disclosure, with the aid of her unknown helpers, who were still keeping everyone else at bay.

“Raichu, use Thunderbolt, maximum power!”

Before the Thunderbolt burst and without waiting for any word from Anais, Arrow stuck his tail in the ground, turning into a lightning rod and directing most of Raichu’s powerful Thunderbolt into the earth.

Turning himself into a lightning rod was something Arrow had learned many years ago, but still few expected this move, and that included Raichu’s trainer. Arrow shook his head to get rid of the dizziness and both himself and Anais were surprised that Raichu seemed not to have been weakened at all by the Thunderbolt at maximum voltage it had just cast.

“Do it again, get rid of that Pikachu already!” Raichu’s owner ordered.

“Use Thunderbolt to cut down the power!” Anais shouted at Arrow.

The two Thunderbolts collided and resulted in an explosion, which, had Arrow not withdrawn a few meters, would have hit him full-force. The smoke and electricity cleared from the air, revealing a whole the size of a car in the ground and two uneasy Pokemon: Arrow, because he was facing a Raichu with the ability to produce more than one full power Thunderbolt in a row, and Raichu, probably because it was facing an unnaturally strong pre-evolution.

Visibly losing patience, the stranger ordered his Pokemon:

“Forget about the Pikachu and get the glass item from her!”

“Wait no don’t listen to him he is crazy!” Anais panicked and shouted at the Pokemon who wasn’t hers.

“Don’t be silly, my Pokemon are trained not to pay attention to anyone else,” the trainer answered in his usual calculated tone.

“I am sorry for them - “ but Anais interrupted her sentence midway.

She was standing in the middle of Arrow’s Electroweb, engulfed by Arrow’s spherical spider web made entirely out of pure electricity. She looked up and saw Arrow on top of the protective Electroweb.

“You realize this is stupid, don’t you?” the man sneered and then ordered Raichu: “Squeeze his Electroweb with your own, until it pops! Then get that item from her!”

Raichu’s Electroweb engulfed Arrow and the latter’s shielding web of electricity. Arrow was making a huge effort not to let Raichu gain ground, when Anais recalled how Arrow compensated his handicap:

“Arrow, cut its Electroweb with Iron Tail! Your Iron Tail is the sharpest thing, remember?”

Arrow’s tail turned into a lightning bolt shaped iron scythe and cut right through Raichu’s Electroweb. The trainer’s sneer turned into astonishment when Raichu’s Electroweb vanished and the Pokemon rolled down Arrow’s Electroweb, hitting the ground.

Anais couldn’t help a biting remark from inside Arrow’s shield:

“Have you ever heard of compensating for what you lack? It’s such a pity.”

But her short ecstatic moment ended abruptly. From the corner of her eye she saw it flying in the air towards Arrow, probably thrown by a well-meaning individual on her side: the blue crystal with green and yellow sparkles within, the Thunderstone which Arrow had been avoiding for a lifetime.

“Arrow, watch out!”

But Arrow didn’t and the Thunderstone hit him. The crystal rolled down his Electroweb and fell on the ground. The moment he realized what hit him, he lost the strength to maintain the protective screen, which vanished.

Arrow fell and Anais caught him in her arms, dropping her cell phone and letting the “R” tube roll on the ground, not caring anymore what happened to any. Raichu snatched the purple test tube and was gone, together with its trainer.

The world was ending. Arrow was in shock, coiled up in Anais’ arms, tears rolling down his cheeks, seemingly oblivious to anything and everything. Some people wanted to help, very nice. But no one _asked_ for their help, damn it!

“Arrow, I am so sorry…”

She was crying. It was too late and nothing was worse than too late.

“Nothing will change! Nothing!”

She wanted to tell him that she would love him just the same either way. But _he_ wouldn’t…

While waiting for the white light to put an end to the tension, a woman appeared in front of her out of nowhere, offering a helping hand:

“Come on now,” she said to Anais in a hurry. “Here is a bad place to be at.”

* * *

From his seat in the stands, Ash saw a tall man in an impeccable suit approaching Anais. The man looked familiar, but Ash couldn’t tell who he was or where he had seen him.

The stranger threw a Pokeball in the air. Ash felt chills up and down his spine and his legs turned to lead. How could Anais help Arrow defeat a Raichu? How could Arrow win, given his state? Even with tough training, overcoming the handicap would have been almost impossible when faced with his evolved form, not to mention Arrow hadn’t had any tough training since he had run away.

Raichu threw one seemingly full power Thunderbolt at Arrow, but Arrow used the familiar turn-into-a-lightning-rod trick. Ash feared the second Thunderbold would knock Arrow out, but Arrow parried it with his own. Did Anais tell him to do that? Ash couldn’t tell because of the noise and distance from the arena.

The crowds in the stands were beginning to panic and many people were heading towards the arena exits. Anais, the stranger and their two electric Pokemon were surrounded by battlers – the ones who wanted to stop Anais from making the disclosure and the ones on her side. It was hard to make anything out because of the rising chaos.

Even though he had no Pokemon, Ash dashed down to the arena, hoping to help in some way, in _any_ way. He bumped into people rushing outside, ignoring their comments. He stopped abruptly, as an invisible fist emptied his lungs of air, and dropped to his knees, as the crowds continued pouring over him, threatening to knock him down any moment.

Arrow’s life wasn’t meant to end like this. People shouldn’t do these things! This wasn’t fair and humans were stupid!

Through eyes in tears, Ash saw the stranger calling out his Weezing. This was odd, this Weezing looked oversized, but from such a long distance and in such tumult, nothing was certain any more.

Thick grey smoke began spreading fast from the Weezing at the edge of the arena to everywhere else. The screams of the crowds raised in intensity and Ash was engulfed by smoke.

All he saw was dark grey. Strangely, he didn’t cough or suffocate. The smoke, if it was smoke, only hindered his vision. How this gas was called, he didn’t remember or even care, for that matter.

A cold sharp thing was shoved in his back and someone shouted, obviously at him:

“Ash, you’ve gotten yourself into what you shouldn’t have!”

That even voice, which seemed controlled and calculated even when shouting - it sounded oddly familiar.

“Oh, too late now! Or did I take the words right out of your mouth!?!”

“Tell me something Ash… How does it feel, for the first time in your life to know too much?”

“Paul – “

But Paul’s bullet silenced Ash.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Announcement! There is now a playlist for this fanfic. It is called “Pokemon - Above the Iron Sky” and you can find it on youtube. I don’t know if links are allowed here, but you can easily find the playlist!
> 
> Now, a few mentions about this chapter! I keep on using exclamation marks, maybe I am under the influence of the Pokemon episode titles!
> 
> Barry Newanski is Barry from the anime, one of Ash’s rivals. I gave him the surname Newanski because he doesn’t have a surname in the anime, at least I didn’t find this information on the internet.
> 
> And to eliminate all doubt: Paul is the anime trainer who is Ash’s rival in the Diamond and Pearl series! The one with sleek purple hair and no irises. I like to call him Young Snape or Mr. Depression.
> 
> Also, headcanon time: if a Pokemon with a handicap evolves, the evolved form will no longer have the handicap. This is what Paul means by “This would have solved his issues”, when referring to Arrow. I am hoping that my writing is clear enough to convey this idea, but I don’t know about that, so here it is explained.  
I also want to use this headcanon as the real motivation behind Ash wanting to evolve Arrow, but this time without taking into consideration Arrow’s refusal.


	12. Long Story

“Come on now,” the woman said to Anais in a hurry. “Here is a bad place to be at.”

The stranger had appeared in front of Anais in the blink of an eye. With her purple reddish hair tied back and dressed all in black, she looked beautiful.

“Who are you?” Anais asked mistrustfully, clutching the trembling coiled up Arrow tighter.

“No time for this!” the woman replied, dodging a fireball sent by one of the battlers. “Please trust me!”

“Why should I trust you? I don’t even know you! What if you are one of Clifford’s people?”

“Look,” the woman said in a milder tone. “Do you have any other options? If you just stand there, Clifford’s people will surely come after you! If you come with me, there might be a chance to get out of this.”

Anais, with the oblivious Arrow in her arms, staggered up. The stranger smiled.

“Jessie,” she outstretched her hand to Anais. “And you must be Anais.”

“How do you know?”

“Long story, now follow me closely, it’s gonna get smoky in here!”

Jessie slithered amongst the battlers and spectators, heading to the arena exits with the agility of an Ekans, and Anais had a hard time keeping up. Like Jessie said, thick smoke was rapidly spreading throughout the arena. Maybe something caught fire in all the mess.

The two managed to exit the arena and Anais followed Jessie to a car parked nearby. A couple of seconds before entering the car, the engine was set going.

Anais threw herself on the rear bench seat, slamming the door behind her. Jessie dashed on the driver’s seat and the Meowth who had been standing there quickly jumped on the passenger seat near Jessie.

Meowth turned around and faced Anais with large bright eyes. He glanced at Arrow, quivered and started talking:

“But isn’t that Pikachu? I mean… I mean… _that_ Pikachu?”

“YOU CAN TALK!” Anais exclaimed, pointing at Meowth with a trembling hand and forgetting about the white light for a brief moment.

“Outstanding sense of observation!” Meowth replied.

“You two, calm down,” Jessie interrupted the two passengers. “Meowth, we must take Anais and Pikachu to safety. And we will be taking off.”

After Jessie’s intervention, an invisible hand gently pressed Anais’ stomach and she sunk deeper into the rear bench seat. After a few seconds, she came to reason and looked out the window.

The vehicle had indeed taken off and they were flying above the city and seemingly out of it.

“But why isn’t he electrocuting us like in the old days?” Meowth asked in his hoarse voice, interrupting Anais’ train of thoughts, which was again heading towards the white light.

“Do you know Arrow?” Anais asked Meowth hesitantly, trying to get used to the idea of a talking Pokemon.

“Long story…” answered both Meowth and Jessie in a bored tone, astounding Anais even more.

“Meowth, Pikachu is in shock,” Jessie said, eyes not turning away from the windshield.

“Karma…”

“An idiot threw a Thunderstone at him and it made contact,” Jessie cut the long story short.

After a second of silence, Meowth started jumping up and down on the passenger seat, whining and muttering incoherently, unable to hold back his tears. Now there were two desperate Pokemon in a small space and that didn’t help lighten the mood.

“But… but… but…” Meowth uttered, “Who would do such a thing? Stupid, stupid humans!” And then the cat Pokemon suddenly realized what an evolution at this precise moment meant:

“Wait! Stop the car! He will kill us! He will go totally berserk! We can’t have him evolve here, _with_ us!”

“I don’t want this either, but it can’t be helped!” Anais said. She was getting more nervous by every breath because the white light was late to appear. From what she knew, a Pokemon’s evolution by contact with an evolutionary stone was instant.

“Calm down you two,” Jessie addressed them both. “Pikachu will not evolve, simply because it has nothing which he can evolve into.”

After a second of perplexity, Anais quoted from memory as if reading from a book:

“What do you mean by that? The evolved form of Pikachu is Raichu…”

“Yes,” Jessie approved patiently. “But this particular Pikachu trained so hard in an effort to become as strong as his evolved form, that it actually did. It all goes back to his aversion to evolving. And where force lacks, he compensates with other things. So, since he is equal to a Raichu, evolution would be pointless. Nature does no pointless things.” Jessie concluded and continued with a smile:

“So stop waiting for the white light, it will never come. And Pikachu can use a Thunderstone as a bath scrub, no worries about that!”

“Wow…” Meowth mumbled, his large eyes giving away the fact that he was dealing with many thoughts at the same time.

“But… But how do you know all this about Arrow?” Anais asked.

“Long story…” Meowth and Jessie again answered in sync.

“All stories are long with you, it seems…”

It was unclear whether Arrow had listened to Jessie’s explanation, because ever since Anais entered the car with him, Arrow did nothing but cry and tremble rolled up in his partner’s arms. Now he seemed to have slightly calmed down and grasped his surroundings, including Meowth and Jessie.

Arrow slithered out of Anais’ arms with agility and fixed Meowth with piercing, menacing eyes.

“Sheesh…” Meowth said in a drawling voice and rolled his eyes, while Anais tried to set the Electric Type at ease.

“Arrow, please calm down, Jessie and Meowth are cool, they want to help us!”

“Piiiiiiii?! Pikachu!! Pika pika! PIKA!”

“You don’t say!” replied Meowth.

“What _did_ he say?”

“Beep beep BEEEEEP!” explained Meowth.

“Oh dear… Arrow, please listen to me, I see you know these guys, but they actually want to help us!”

“Piiiikaaaaaa!”

“Everyone shut up!” Jessie exclaimed with maternal authority, silencing her passengers. “We are being followed.”

And indeed they were. Two black dots hovered in the sky at the same altitude as them, following their vehicle from a distance.

“I had a feeling this would happen…” Jessie uttered, not looking away from the windshield.

Jessie stepped on it and the vehicle sped up considerably. She then turned the vehicle downwards, towards the huge Ryme Lake dwelling underneath. With one hand she was controlling the wheel while with the other she picked a Pokeball from one of her pockets.

“Everyone hold on to something!” she advised the three companions while the vehicle sped up towards the vast greenness below. Bringing the Pokeball closer to her lips, she talked to the inhabitant:

“Gyarados, I will be throwing the Pokeball in the air. When it reaches the vertex, emerge and use Hurricane on the two bastards following us! Good luck, dear!”

Jessie activated a switch and the window beside her opened just enough for her to throw Gyarados’ Pokeball out.

“We will be diving in in three…”

A split second after the window closed back, the bright light bursting out of the Pokeball blinded Anais, who hastily blinked to drive the purple stars away.

“Two…”

The light materialized into a blue serpentine never ending body covered in scales. Grey clouds were circling around the immense Pokemon, quickly becoming thicker.

“One!”

Dark green replaced Gyarados and the hurricane it brought along.

Anais’ heart skipped a beat and even the infuriated Arrow stood stone-still at the loud splash. Jessie continued veering the vehicle, seemingly undisturbed by the environment switch. The water surface seen from the vehicle windows was a turbid foamy mess, which was getting blurrier by the second, meaning Jessie was probably veering deeper, away from the battle above.

On the rear bench seat Arrow looked out the window beside him, as if searching for a break in the dark greenness, when his body suddenly collapsed.

“Arrow!” Anais dashed towards the yellow Pokemon and pulled him in her arms.

“Ykes!” Meowth added.

Arrow’s body was limp and his eyes, lively and alert until just then, were now fixed on a dot above the Pokemon’s head, which only he could see.

“Arrow, say something…”

“Pi… Pika… CHU!” Arrow’s cheeks let out an uncontrolled burst of sparks, which hit Anais directly in the face, causing her to jump, bump her head into the vehicle ceiling and drop Arrow’s limp body on the bench.

For a few seconds she saw double and green and purple sparks stung her eyes. Jessie’s voice brought her back to reality:

“It seems like a case of Electric flu.”

“Great, it would have been much better had he evolved…” Meowth interrupted and Anais accompanied him:

“Electric flu…?” she asked confused, rubbing her head and picking up Arrow from the bench.

“It is a medical condition affecting Electric types. They become overly charged and cannot discharge in a controlled manner. If not taken to a Pokemon Center as soon as possible, they explode.”

“Arrow, no…” Anais pulled the still awake but unresponsive Pokemon in a tight hug.

“Eh… I wouldn’t advise you to do that…” Meowth warned Anais warily.

“Pika…” came the weak response from Arrow’s side. “Pika… CHUAA!”

Again his cheeks sent out an uncontrolled outburst of electricity, this time not hitting Anais as hard, since she had moved her face away from his, anticipating the flare. She was still electrocuted a bit, but managed not to drop Arrow.

With tired eyes, the Electric type looked at her.

“Pika,” he muttered apologetically, his sight for the first time showing the fear of being abandoned.

“It’s ok, Arrow, I will never let you go,” she smiled to him reassuringly.

“There is an insulating blanket right under the bench. I suggest you wrap Arrow up in it if you want to hold him until we reach the nearest Pokemon Center.”

Anais laid Arrow on the vehicle floor for a few seconds until she found the insulating blanket Jessie mentioned. She then wrapped Arrow in the fabric and sat down on the rear bench holding him in her arms.

“But why does he have this Electric flu thing?”

“It is caused by either exposure to strong electromagnetic energy or high levels of emotional stress. I suspect the second variant. But if all goes well and we don’t face further obstacles along the way, we will reach the nearest Pokemon Center in about 30 minutes.”

“30 minutes, are you crazy?” Meowth jumped on the passenger seat near Jessie and examined the GPS on the dashboard. “That means 200 kilometers per hour in the next 30 minutes! Do you think the engine can take this, given the fact that we are traveling _under_water and this puts more pressure on the machinery?!”

“And what are you suggesting, Meowth?! If we strain the engine underwater the vehicle might explode. If we don’t rush Arrow to the nearest Pokemon Center, we will _surely_ explode. What is your reasoning?”

Meowth wanted to protest, but could find no flaw in Jessie’s judgement. So he just stared into the greenness extending beyond the windshield.

They dived in silence through the Ryme Lake waters for a few minutes. In Anais’ lap, a spasm shook Arrow’s body, followed by an electricity outburst. Thanks to the insulating blanket, Anais didn’t get electrocuted this time. All of Arrow’s body was covered in the fabric, except for his ears, eyes and forehead.

Anais leaned above her friend and kissed him on the burning forehead.

“Shhh… My little dumpling…just a few minutes and we’ll be at the Pokemon Center,” she whispered.

“Pika…CHUUUAH!” Arrow could not refrain yet another electric discharge, which got absorbed by the insulating fabric.

“How did you two get so close?” Meowth asked Anais, his searching eyes examining her with a mixture of curiosity and spite. “I could swear Pikachu would never accept anyone except for the twerp ….”

“The twerp… you mean Ash? There are a lot of things I don’t know. Anyway… I let him come to me instead of invading his private space. And everything else is honestly just… a long story!”

* * *

The tall stranger in the impeccable suit was running upwards, through the narrow lane separating the stands. Enclosing the large oval arena and on top of the stands was the aboveground parking lot destined for flying vehicles.

Not everyone could afford a parking space on the aboveground parking lot, so this guy was something, no doubt about that.

_But not something amazingly intelligent, since he doesn’t even suspect others might also wear X-ray glasses_, James thought with satisfaction.

From the stands, James had witnessed this guy’s Raichu snatch the test tube containing the “R”. The substance surely mustn’t have fallen in the hands of ordinary civilians.

The distance between James and the stranger was getting smaller by the second, but James had to speed his pace if he wanted to reach the stranger before the latter reached the parking lot. The spectators were heading downwards, towards the ground level arena exits, blinded by Weezing’s grey thick smoke, constantly getting in James’ way. But the stranger was dealing with the same hindrance, so this wasn’t much of an issue.

With feline agility, James caught up with the guy just when he was about to open the gate to the parking lot with the magnetic card.

“Prepare for trouble!” James said and knocked the stranger unconscious.

With expert precision, James searched the man’s pockets. The “R” laid safely in an inside pocket to the guy’s chest.

Luckily for James, the wallet laid in the same place.

“And make it double,” James said, smiling to himself, and made a run for it before the guy came to.

All that James had to do was to quickly seize a camera, take it to a place less affected by the smoke and broadcast live what the “R” could do. He would be using his loyal Wobbuffet and hoped the Pokemon would forgive him.

* * *

Ash’s consciousness constrained him to half-open his eyes. An oxygen mask covered his face and his body felt lead-heavy. He laid down in a powerfully lit up room and could hear muffled voices. Or was he moving?

Someone was standing beside him. Despite the blurry eyesight, the person looked oddly familiar. The sharp face, dark sunken eyes, black hair…

Giovanni? What the…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I have nowhere else to write this down, I will use the author notes section of this chapter to put down some thoughts about why I love Ash’s Pikachu, so much in fact, that I wrote this fan fiction where Pikachu is one of the main characters.  
Please note that I only saw the first two seasons plus a few episodes from the other seasons of the Pokemon anime and what I am writing is based on that.
> 
> I love Pika because he doesn’t get arrogant when he wins, nor does he get depressed when he loses (except for that one episode “Pika and Goliath”, I think I cried at that one).
> 
> I love Pika because he shows everyone that looking tough and fierce does not equal being strong or undefeatable. He makes no effort to look intimidating and often acts childish. But does this mean he is not strong? Absolutely not. This is why one must never be intimidated by people who appear “badass”. It really means nothing.
> 
> I love Pika because he looks down on no one and bows to no one.
> 
> I love Pika because he keeps improving, training, learning. He gives us an example of how one must act if they want to be good at something. And is he the very best, like no one ever was? Absolutely not. But he doesn’t seem burdened by that.
> 
> I love Pika because he is cute and he knows that, and he does take advantage of that sometimes. But who wouldn’t? And it’s not like he is being manipulative of Ash, Pika loves Ash.
> 
> I love Pika because he is grateful to the ones who help him and because he wants to be independent and self-sufficient. I recommend seeing the episode “Pikachu is born!/Enter Pikachu!” which aired in November 2019, it is wonderful.
> 
> I love Pika because he is supportive and helpful with less experienced Pokemon and new Pokemon in Ash’s team. Who wouldn’t appreciate joining a new collective and being showed around and guided by one helpful individual? These persons make life much easier.  
One side note here! I am aware of episode 30 of the new series “Pokemon Journeys”, “The reluctant Pikachu and the exasperated Mr. Mime”, where Pika apparently gets jealous of Riolu. I have an explanation for Pika being slightly out of character here. Did you notice the trainer Ash and Riolu were battling in the beginning of the episode? He is one of the guys from Lt. Surge’s gym from episode 18, the same Lt. Surge who Ash wanted to battle in episode 18, but battled Visquez instead. And it could be that this trainer reminded Pika of the Vermilion City Gym and *cough* *cough* the Raichu. Maybe Pika was actually angry at Ash for not realizing this and not jealous on Riolu. It is not the first time Ash is a bit unsensitive. 
> 
> And last, but not least, I love Pika because he accepts no compromise. He either wins on his own terms, or loses. This is regarding his refusal to evolve.
> 
> I wrote this long note because I noticed there are a lot of Pikachu haters out there. But that’s ok, every character has fans and haters. Some love him, some hate him, but everyone knows his name!


	13. Partners

_Hello back, dear listeners. _

_For those of you who’ve just turned on your radios, I was bringing you the latest news regarding the Unova Pockemon League Conference. Unfortunately, the Unova League is suspended until all suspects involved in the incident from the first round are interrogated._

_So… instead of commenting and gossiping about the battles in the first round, we have a chaos to untie!_

_Clifford was once again accused of getting involved in experiments with the “R”, the purple gas which sent him to jail six years and a half ago. I don’t know about you guys, but I always believed he should have stayed in jail. _

_Unfortunately, the violence from the Unova League resulted in 92 injured and the figure is not final. The injured got wounded either accidentally, because of the Wheezing’s smoke, or in the fights._

_I have to bring in bad news, everyone. One such case is the beloved former Pokemon trainer from Pallet Town, Ash Ketchum. Ash was shot and the criminal is still unknown. _

_Ash is currently in hospital in a bad shape. I cried when I heard the news… I can only hope he recovers and whoever shot him gets caught. If you have any information, if you saw Ash interact with anyone on the day of the incident, please contact the Unova Police. Any clues can be helpful._

_Now, I think it is time for some music, to get the grief off our chests, because it never helped anyone._

_I am Lucy Stevens and you are listening to Basement FM._

* * *

Ash half-opened his eyes. He laid in bed, in a hospital ward where the window blinds did not let in all the light of the day. He was still bandaged and the cannula still pricked his left arm.

Ash blinked a few times for a clearer eye sight and to drive away the fluffy fog which filled his head. And to cease the hallucination he was most probably experiencing.

Two Pikachu stood on his bed. They both lacked a paw and part of an ear. What was this? Was Arrow actually there? Was he practicing Double Team in the ward?

Ash squinted his eyes. The two Pikachu merged into one, who stood at his right. Arrow’s dark brown eyes were fixing upon Ash with a mixture of grief, worry, reproach and love. The gleam in his eyes gave away the fact that he was fighting back tears.

“Pikachu… Arrow… or both?” Ash let out in a low, hoarse voice.

Arrow didn’t stir a muscle.

“Please tell me it’s not too late…”

_No, it’s not too late… Screw you, Pikapi._

Ash started crying and his gun wound stung, but that didn’t matter. Arrow couldn’t keep the tears at bay either. Ash pulled Arrow to his chest like in the old days and Arrow didn’t protest.

* * *

After all is said and done, everything seems much easier. All obstacles look menacing when you battle them, but after you’ve overcome them, they look like bumps in the road.

It was a warm day and Ash idly laid on a bench in Ryme Park, one of the largest parks in Ryme City. Ever since he arrived in Ryme City, he had been yearning for a green patch, how come he didn’t see Ryme Park before?

Arrow perched on Ash’s shoulder, looking around. Arrow’s forgiveness was the best medicine for Ash’s wounds, both the mental and physical ones. Neither of them said anything, as neither needed to.

The moment they both saw Anais coming, Arrow jumped off Ash’s shoulder.

“Pikaaaa!” he exclaimed energetically.

“Arrow!” Anais pressed the Pokemon in her arms and held him like that for a few seconds.

Then she quickly loosened her hug, looked Arrow in the eye and scolded him, trying hard not to laugh:

“Arrow don’t you ever run away like that from the Pokemon Center! You scared me to death!”

“Pika piiika…” Arrow answered apologetically and his ears sagged. She hugged Arrow again and then addressed Ash, who in the meantime joined in:

“Hi Ash. Does he always run away like that?”

“Sometimes,” Ash sighed. “It can’t be helped.”

They walked along the coiled up alleys of Ryme Park. Grass and shrubs unknown to Ash enclosed the alleys, purifying the air and decorating the place. It looked like each shrub and tree was planted with a specific purpose, no single plant looked out of place and he felt he could rest his eyes on the vegetation forever.

Arrow was rejoicing the newly found greenness in his own way: jumping from branch to branch, frolicking in the grass, tasting some fruit every now and then.

“How are you feeling?” Anais asked. “Is the gun wound troubling you?”

“I’m fine, it barely stings once in a while. But it’s ok.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” she smiled.

Now that nothing was burdening him, Ash finally had the chance to take a closer look at Anais. She looked really pretty in the yellow dress. Her almond-shaped eyes revealed a warmth which he never noticed until then and her hair looked normal.

“Hey…Are you sure about joining those guys…?” Ash asked uneasily. “They are involved in all sorts of questionable affairs. They are not trustworthy.”

“I don’t know…” Anais answered uncertainly. “I’ll just see how things go. No hesitations, no expectations, right? Now that Giovanni is out, I think the whole movement is better.”

“That’s right… How about we go eat something?”

“Cool. There is this place where they have the best ketchup in the city, let’s go there!”

“Piiikachu!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The story is almost over. What follows is an epilogue to wrap things up, from a different perspective.
> 
> Lucy Stevens is one of the main characters in the movie “Pokemon Detective Pikachu”. I figured I should mention this, it’s been over a year since the movie release.
> 
> Thank you very much for reading my story and sticking with me for so long. This story has been a delight to write!


	14. The Final Evolution

The semi-finals of the Kanto League had just begun. Ash stood at his post, waiting for the commentator to announce the start of the battle.

Ash’s come-back was a pleasant surprise for his supporters, some of whom having lost hopes that the Kanto champion would ever battle again.

In the arena stands the buzz was ever rising, with supporters and some ultras encouraging their favorite.

Arrow never felt so at peace with everything. He was watching the match from the stands in Anais’ lap. Despite Ash’s pleas, but for understandable reasons, Arrow was not allowed to take part in League battles anymore.

They were accompanied by Anais’ mates. Jessie, James and Meowth sat a couple of rows behind the whole gang.

“Go Ketchum!”

“Show us what you’ve got, Ketchum!”

“Down with the others, Meowth!”

Arrow still didn’t like or trust them, but at least he accepted them.

Had someone told Arrow ten years ago that he wouldn’t battle in the Leagues any more, he would have been vexed. But now when all was said and done… He was content with just watching.

He could help Ash in other ways. Like for example, last month. Ash and himself were climbing a hill, when a wild Raichu appeared. Or tried to hide behind a bush, Arrow was still unsure. Since Ash needed an Electric Type for his new team and this one happened to be there, Arrow did his part with no re-match needed. Surprisingly, this Raichu seemed nice, or at least acceptable. Most probably Arrow would soon befriend him. Arrow never seemed to get enough of the prank pulled by Ash, when he made everyone believe that Raichu was actually _himself_! Good one, Ash!

Becoming Ash’s partner once again felt like a heavy burden vanished. Although, with Anais around, it was like he had two human partners. One to whom he would always be loyal and one who probably turned Arrow into the most spoiled Pokemon in the world.

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Kanto Pokemon League Conference!”

The stands exploded with cheers.

“To the North Stand, we have Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town, who, after a long break, decided to battle again!”

The cheers almost covered the commentator’s voice.

“And man, does he have some surprise for you!”

“Pikaaa, Pikapi!” Arrow exclaimed and jumped in Anais’ lap.

This match would be interesting, no doubt about that!


End file.
